


If You Need Me, I'll Be At The Rink

by Aranee, justafei



Category: EXO (Band), SHINee, SuperM (Korea Band)
Genre: 2018 World Figure Skating Championships, 2018-2019 Figure Skating Season, 2019 World Figure Skating Championships, Alternate Universe - Skating, Bottom Kim Jongin | Kai, Cute, Eventual Romance, Eventual Smut, Everything is Beautiful and Nothing Hurts, Figure Skater Lee Taemin, Free Skate (Figure Skating), Gamer Byun Baekhyun, ISU Grand Prix of Figure Skating, Kim Jongin | Kai is Whipped, Like, M/M, No Angst, Self-Indulgent, Sexual Tension, Shy Kim Jongin | Kai, Slow Burn, Top Lee Taemin, figure skating AU, so self indulgent
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-04-29
Updated: 2021-02-09
Packaged: 2021-03-02 02:41:20
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 24
Words: 163,645
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23917714
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Aranee/pseuds/Aranee, https://archiveofourown.org/users/justafei/pseuds/justafei
Summary: Jongin is an up-and-rising figure skater, having just earned his spot on the Junior National Team, who wants to make it to the Senior Grand Prix Series. But he'd also be more than happy if his sunbae--devastatingly beautiful Lee Taemin--plowed him over in practice one day.
Relationships: Byun Baekhyun/Zhang Yi Xing | Lay, Kim Jongin | Kai & Lee Taemin, Kim Jongin | Kai/Lee Taemin, Kim Junmyeon | Suho/Oh Sehun
Comments: 347
Kudos: 201





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Hi I'm just your resident figure skater who really loves TaeKai and all of my side pairings :3 Please enjoy~

“Jongin!” Jongin looks up confusedly until he locates the voice calling his name from the uppermost row of bleachers. The metal stairs thunk hollowly under his footsteps as he clamors up to where his training-mate and the newest Novice men’s top 10 finisher, Oh Sehun, sits with his boyfriend Junmyeon. Jongdae follows him with a giant bucket of popcorn and a fluffy blanket tucked under one arm. 

“Hey, Dae.” Sehun nods at him as Jongin pulls the blanket out and drapes it over all four of their laps to shield a little from the cool temperature of the ice rink. “Fourth group,” he tells Jongin, who nods and brushes his still-damp bangs away from his eyes and pulls his hood up. “Warming up.” 

“Where’s Jinki?” Jongin strains to find a glimpse of his sunbae circling the ice with six other men. 

“There,” Sehun murmurs, pointing to a familiar figure pulling into a backspin. Jongin easily finds Minho from his purple top, then turns his attention to Taemin, who is still circling the rink, shaking his legs out. 

Lee Taemin. Jongin can only  _ dream  _ about being as good as him. The way he had advanced through the levels of Men’s figure skating and dominated the most prestigious competitions in the country (and world) was exceptional in every sense of the word. At fourteen, he’d made his first Nationals appearance as an Intermediate skater and promptly blew everyone out of the water with bright, eager eyes and a hunger that was palpable despite the gangly, awkward limbs that didn’t quite know what they were doing. A year later, he’d had his triple Axel. When Jongin was fifteen, he was still figuring out his  _ double  _ Axel. While earlier today, Sehun’s top 10 Novice finish seemed more the general, surefire speed for up-and-coming young skaters, Taemin’s advancement from Intermediate to Novice 3 years ago had promptly brought about his first place finish at Nationals, leaving everyone speechless and placing him in the favor of skating fans around the world. Thus his fast progression to Junior came as no surprise to anybody. Last year, Taemin was assigned to two Junior Grand Prix (JGP) series competitions as a result of his bronze medal at Nationals, joining the Junior version of the most important competition series on the international stage. There, he  _ then  _ proceeded to land not one, not two, but  _ three _ different quads, securing himself a silver medal at JGP Finals (along with a nice check). And now, Jongin reaches for the popcorn in Jongdae’s hands while he watches Taemin warm up an effortless triple Lutz combination in the final warm-up group with his sunbaes. There’s no doubt that 18-year old Taemin’s senior debut is the most anticipated skate tonight. 

“Head tilt,” Sehun laughs, and Jongin glances over to the sidelines, where Coach Kibum’s head is tilted so far to the right as he watches his three best skaters warm up that his neck looks broken. 

“Why is he doing that?” Jongdae asks, completely clueless to everything.

“It’s his nervous tick,” Jongin explains, chuckling a little. He’s giddy tonight. 

“So,” Junmyeon begins while reaching over Sehun for the popcorn, “Congratulations! You’re going to your first JGP!” 

“Yes,” Jongin agrees, smiling in spite of himself. “It feels surreal.” 

“Do you know where they placed you?” Sehun asks, bouncing his leg a little. 

“Not yet. They announce Junior together with Senior. I don’t care though. They can send me anywhere.” Jongin laughs a little. He really doesn’t mind which two of the six Junior Grand Prix tournaments the South Korean Skating Federation would decide to send him to. Earning enough points at those two tournaments to advance to the JGP Final in his first season would be totally unexpected either way. Those feats were, in Jongin’s eyes, reserved for a certain talented (and impossibly cute) sunbae by the name of Lee Taemin. After last year’s disastrous National debut as a Novice rookie, Jongin had completely changed tactics, choosing to approach National- and World-renowned coach Kim Kibum, to lead him through his Junior debut. For some reason, Kibum had welcomed him, insisting that he had “unrealized potential.” The coaching change had paid off, and Jongin had won himself a spot on Team South Korea as well as a Junior bronze medal just hours ago. 

~

_ “Nice one, kiddo.” Kibum ruffles his hair when Jongin steps off the ice after the awards ceremony with a wide smile. “Well-deserved.”  _

_ “Thanks, Coach!”  _

_ “But you still have a long way to go.” Kibum pokes his shoulder with a glimmer of amusement in his eyes and Jongin stumbles back a few steps. “Don’t relax just yet. JGP is gonna kick your ass.”  _

_ “Okay, Coach.” Jongin’s smile can’t be wiped off his face. “Whatever you say.”  _

_ “Let’s GOOOOOOOOOOO!” Sehun shrieks when Jongin makes his way back to the athlete’s lounge and Jongin lets out a shout of laughter as well, wrapping himself (skates and all) around his best friend. “Who’s Kim Jongin? I only know--”  _

_ “JUNIOR BRONZE MEDALIST!” Sehun and Jongin scream triumphantly at each other. The door opens and the rest of Coach Kibum’s team stumbles in as well.  _

_ “MY HOOBAEEEEE!” Minho tackles Jongin. “I’m PROUD OF YOU, NINI!” Jongin gasps as the breath is knocked out of his lungs.  _

_ “Ah--thank you, sunbae--” Jongin gently pries himself out of Minho and Sehun’s death grips and bows to Jinki, who offers him a hand to shake. When he turns to Taemin, the elder offers him the tiniest of smiles with a faraway look in his eyes and holds his hand out for a high-five, grasping onto the tips of Jongin’s fingers when their hands meet. Jongin looks up in surprise. _

_ “I see Kibum was right about your potential,” Taemin murmurs, and Jongin’s breath catches in his throat.  _

_ “Er--I have a ways to go--”  _

_ “Good job, Nini.” Taemin ruffles Jongin’s hair, then sidesteps him to begin warming up. Jongin’s hand goes up to his cheek to make sure he isn’t blushing.  _

_ “We’ll, er, leave,” Jongin says quickly, bowing again as he drags a smirking Sehun after him. “Give you Senior sunbaes some space to warm up.”  _

_ “We’ll celebrate after!” Jinki waves them out. “Congratulations!”  _

~

“What’s he doing? That’s really cool,” Jongdae mumbles around a handful of popcorn. 

“You’re gonna eat the whole thing before they compete. And that’s Jinki. Quad Salchow. It’s a jump with four revolutions in the air,” Jongin explains patiently. Jongdae’s strength is not skating, it’s being an economics major. 

“What are your predictions?” Sehun asks on the other side of him. “Taemin top four?” 

“If he skates like he usually does, yes.” Jongin’s mouth twists to the side. “Minho will win. Changmin second, Jinki top five at least.” 

“Nah. Jinki’s gonna do better than that. I think it’s Minho, Jinki, Changmin, Taemin.” 

“The real question is who we’re sending to Worlds,” Jongin points out. “Worlds is the most important competition on the international stage, and we only get one spot this year.”

“Wait, why? But you get to send 3 skaters to the Worlds, right?” Jongdae pipes up, and Sehun snorts. 

“Because we did shitty last year.” 

“Because how many skaters a country can send to the Worlds is determined by the country’s performance in the previous season,” Jongin’s explanation is much more thorough. “Long story short, we only get one spot this year, and this person has to at least place in the top 10 for us to get two spots next year.” 

“Or top 2,” Sehun adds. “For three.” 

“Three spots is too much to hope for. Only the Americans and Russians get spots like that,” Jongin snorts as the skaters clear the ice. Jongin nervously clenches his fists as Jinki’s program begins. 

“Why am I more nervous for him than for myself?” he whispers to Sehun, who nods in agreement. Jongdae only watches with vague interest. Next to him, he can see Sehun’s lips grazing Junmyeon’s ear as he quietly points out elements for his non-skater boyfriend. 

“Commentate, please,” Jongdae pleads, poking Jongin’s side. “What’s happening?” 

“His quad Salchow, which you just saw in the warm-up, is up first,” Jongin murmurs. He holds his breath as Jinki lands it effortlessly. “Nice landing. It will probably receive more points because it was near perfect.” 

“What happens if you fall?” 

“Then you get an automatic one point deduction as well as a negative Grade of Execution, which means the jump isn’t worth as much anymore. For example, a quad Salchow is worth 10.3 points. But if he fell, he would’ve automatically been deducted 4.8 points, along with whatever else he might’ve done--like maybe he didn’t rotate enough, or maybe it was just a mess in general.” Jongin whoops in Jongdae’s ear as Jinki nails his quad-triple combination. “YUS!” 

“OW!” Jongdae cringes away and Jongin high-fives Sehun. 

“That’s it,” Sehun announces. “That’s all he needs.” 

“Yep, everything else is decently easy for him.” Jongin nods in satisfaction. Jinki throws himself into a combination spin. 

“Woahhhh…” Jongdae’s eyes go wide and his hand stills with a handful of popcorn halfway to his mouth. Jongin and Sehun are silent, but they’re both counting under their breath. 

“Review,” Sehun mutters when Jinki pulls out of his last position a few revolutions too soon, and Jongin nods in agreement. “Should’ve held it more.” 

“Why? I thought it looked good,” Junmyeon murmurs. 

“Because you need two or more revolutions to make it count as a position. A position is basically one of those cool poses you see us do in the spin. You need at least eight revolutions if you’re going for a more advanced spin, per say. You can earn up to a Level 4 spin depending on how many  _ features  _ you put into the spin. Extra revolutions is one of those features. But if I counted right, I think he only did… six? Seven?” 

“He knows better than to do that,” Jongin shakes his head. “Kibum’ll beat his ass.” 

“Not a big deal. Still a good Level 3 with plus GOE.” Sehun shrugs. 

“What is a GOE?” Jongdae asks. 

“It’s not really important…” Jongin begins, but Jongdae insists on an explanation. 

“I wanna learn. Even if it’s just like, surface knowledge. I wanna actually know what I’m watching when you skate, since you’re good now.” 

“Excuse you, I was good before this. Anyways, GOE stands for Grade of Execution. It goes from negative 3 to positive 3 depending on how good you executed the element. A GOE of 0 just receives the base value of the stunt, positive GOE adds bonuses and negative GOE leads to deductions.” 

“Okay, so then wouldn’t somebody be able to get a maximum GOE on everything and max out their score with the most complex routine? You said last time that the score values of the individual elements added together determine how much a routine is worth, if I remember correctly.” Jongin laughs at this. 

“Technically, yes. But that would mean that you have to score perfect in artistry which is also slightly subjective, and it’s also scored differently than individual elements. Plus, nobody’s ever scored perfect for all elements before. There are ways to increase complexity, but I promise you there’s pretty much no such thing as a ‘maximum score’. The world record for a combined score is around 340 points. And every skater’s average is different, but typically to place within top 5 for Senior Men’s international competitions, you gotta get at  _ least  _ 240 combined. There have been less complex programs that have beaten more complex ones… In the end, skating is still pretty subjective sometimes.” Jongin claps loudly when Jinki’s music hits its final strings and Jinki bows to the audience. 

“How much?” Jongin asks Sehun, who bites his lip in thought. “Like… 140?” 

“140, 160… Anywhere in that range.”

“Wait, why so low? I thought you needed around 240?” Jongdae interrupts. 

“We’re talking about  _ just  _ his long program score. Skaters have two programs: the short program is, as you may have guessed, shorter and has less elements. It’s more focused on technique and it also sets up warm-up groups for the long program, otherwise known as a free skate. The better you place in the short, the later you skate in the free. Jinks scored like what, 93 points yesterday? Combined with his free skate score, he’ll probably make around 250, we’re guessing,” Jongin explains. When his score comes up, Sehun nods in satisfaction. 

“264.23. Is that his season’s best?” 

“I don’t know,” Jongin claps with the rest of the crowd and immediately texts the group chat even though he knows none of them will read it until all their teammates have gone. “Good enough for top five, at least.” 

“He’s in the lead, though…” Junmyeon leans against Sehun’s shoulder and shivers a little from the cold. 

“Not for long,” Jongin murmurs as Changmin presents himself to the judges and begins. He’s only met him once or twice at competitions, and they’ve never spoken. Presumably Minho is closer with him, but Changmin trains in Busan with a completely different coach. 

“Woah…” Junmyeon and Jongdae both murmur as the 287.68 pop up on the scoreboard some ten minutes later, but neither Sehun nor Jongin are surprised. Changmin’s been around for just as long as Jinki, and he made the Olympic team last January. Minho had missed it that year due to an injury; Jongin distinctly remembers the slew of curse words as he had sat on the ice, gripping his ankle, knowing that he’d blown his chance to skate. Taemin had still been a Junior that year, and Jinki had  _ just  _ missed the team by a margin of three points. 

“MINHOOOOOOOOO!!!!” Jongin shrieks when he takes the ice. “Oh, he’s pissed,” Jongin remarks. Minho’s eyes are narrowed into slits and everything about his stance is tense, as if he’s ready to fight for every jump that night.

“As he should be. He skates best when he’s pissed.” Sehun sniggers when Minho takes his place. “This is his comeback season.” 

“Was this your friend that smashed his ankle?” Jongdae asks, and Jongin nods. 

“He’s back, and better than ever.” 

“He sure is!” Minho’s opening triple Axel is massive. 

“Holy shit, I think he cleared the boards,” Sehun murmurs. 

“Oh wow.” The four of them remain completely silent, drawn in by the sharp silhouettes that Minho makes, his effortless carriage and edges across the ice, and the way he hits every nuance of the music. 

“And that,” Jongin breathes, rising to his feet with the rest of the crowd and joining in the tumultuous applause that thunders across the entire stadium, “is a comeback.” All the frustration in Minho’s eyes has been replaced with joy and gratitude as he gets down on his knees on the ice and touches his head to the cold surface.

“Oh my god, we’re not even done with the night yet!” Sehun shrieks over the din of noise. Junmyeon puts two fingers in his mouth and wolf-whistles. 

“Taemin’s gonna tear the place apart!” Jongin laughs as they finally sit back down, feeling ecstatic and excited. He can sense the celebration tonight is going to be a good one when the camera trains on Minho and Kibum sitting in the kiss-and-cry section (a little area where skaters and coaching sit and wait for the scores) together and Kibum throws up an “okay” sign, beaming just as widely as his student. 

“The scores for Choi Minho, please.” 

“Please, please, please--” Sehun grips Jongin’s arm. “Please--” 

“His total score is 280.17, putting him second place--” 

“YES!” Jongin screams, but it gets lost in the applause again as the crowd rises to its feet for the second time that evening and Kibum drags a shell-shocked Minho into a massive hug. 

“He’s going to Worlds,” Sehun nods. “He’ll get the spot. There’s no way he won’t.” 

“Oh, definitely. That’s not even a question anymore.” 

“What about Changmin? He beat Minho,” Junmyeon points out. 

“Catering to the audience. They’ll riot if Minho doesn’t get his shot at Worlds this year after missing the Olympics. I’d be shocked if Changmin was actually expecting to get that Worlds spot,” Sehun shrugs. 

“Minho was really good,” Jongdae mumbles when Jongin sits back down. “I think he’s my favorite.” 

“Taemin’s my favorite,” Jongin says quietly and Sehun shoots him a teasing smirk. 

“You like him best because he’s cute.” 

“No!” Jongin protests, even though his cheeks turn pink. “I like his skating style and I really look up to him…” 

“Sureeeee.” 

“You’re  _ my _ favorite,” Junmyeon tells Sehun, leaning into Sehun comfortably. Sehun smiles and presses a soft kiss into Junmyeon’s hair. Jongin ignores their PDA and looks up to watch Taemin conversing with Kibum on the sidelines.

“He IS cute!” Jongdae shrieks next to Jongin as the Jumbotron camera pans to Taemin, and Jongin silently agrees, although cute might not be the best adjective to describe the focused tunnel vision that Taemin is absorbed in at the moment. “Nini, you have such good taste.” 

“I just  _ know  _ this bitch is only pretending to pay attention,” Sehun chortles, watching Taemin’s face. As if right on cue, Kibum snaps his fingers in front of Taemin’s face with a scowl. Taemin nods restlessly and Kibum gives up, waving him off. 

“Representing: The Korea Ice Academy in Seoul, South Korea: Lee Taemin!” And just as predicted, the crowd goes wild. 

“Korea’s sweetheart, making his senior debut,” Sehun commentates, pretending to be the announcer on television, and Jongin bursts into giggles at Sehun’s pitch-perfect impression. “He’s been a fan favorite since his first Nationals debut all the way back in 2014, and last year he really threw down the gauntlet with a bronze medal at the Junior World Championships. Now, at 18 years of age, he’s the youngest one in this final warm-up group, squeezing himself in with a fifth place finish in the short program--popped a triple flip to a double yesterday--but he’s one of the most anticipated skates of the night.” 

“Keep commenting,” Junmyeon requests, and Jongin is so bent over with wheezes that he barely registers the music beginning. 

“Skating to music from the Romeo and Juliet soundtrack, opening here with a quad Toe--” Jongin holds his breath as Taemin speeds into it and lands it flawlessly. “Perfect execution. Just 18 years of age, folks, and he’s already proven he can hold his own against big-shot names like Choi Minho’s flawless performance earlier!” 

“Holy shit,” Jongdae drops the popcorn from his hand back into the striped box as Taemin pulls into a corkscrew spin. “Aren’t his balls uncomfortable?” Sehun’s commentary falters as he bursts out into a fit of silent laughter. 

“Shut UP!” Jongin struggles to keep his giggles silent, smacking Sehun’s shoulder repeatedly as the two roll around in hysterics. 

“That’s the least of our worries,” Sehun chokes out, clutching Jongin for dear life lest they topple over on the narrow bench. “Oh my…” 

“I’d be worried about my balls getting crushed if I was that cute,” Jongdae insists, and Jongin claps his feet together when just his hands aren’t enough.

“Commentary!” Junmyeon insists, eyes still glued to Taemin. 

“Ah, sorry. Ahem.” Sehun wipes tears from his eyes. “N-Nice combination spin there. You’ll see Taemin’s ease and use of skating skills as he picks up speed in this transition. He has a natural flow and flawless carriage across the ice, very uninhibited in his style and technique.” The music slows down to give Taemin a bit of space to breathe in the choreography, then he picks up speed around the corner to send him flying into his quad-triple combination. 

“Quad Sal, triple Toe, you can see the knee bend in the landing of the first jump in order to save that second Toe. A little shaky on the landing but he doesn’t panic, just pulls himself out of it nice and easy. And triple Flip next, an easy jump for him--OH!” Sehun jumps and Jongin gasps as Taemin pops it into a single. “Popped into a single Flip, an uncharacteristic mistake for him.”

“A stupid mistake,” Jongin mutters. 

“Totally unexpected, he made the same mistake last night in the short program… Back in focus now, and right into a triple Axel!” Sehun cheers, losing a semblance of his professionalism. “Bouncing right back from that little bobble… Oh, this is just spectacular, quad Loop perfectly executed--” Sehun’s commentary is cut out as Taemin pulls into his footwork sequence and the audience roars its approval, clapping along to the music right to the very end. 

“Well, it may be raw talent, but it is  _ talent _ !” Sehun’s commentary cuts off as the crowd rises to his feet and stuffed animals rain down on the ice. The camera focuses on Taemin’s face, shining with sweat, eyes still glimmering with a fiery gaze, but filled with self-pride now. 

“That was amazing…” Jongdae’s jaw is slack as he stands up and claps with the rest of the stadium. Jongin’s standing, too, clapping quietly as he stares up at the Jumbotron while Taemin blows a kiss and wiggles his fingers at the audience shyly. 

“Thank you,” Taemin mouths to the camera when he’s seated in the kiss-and-cry. He’s still breathing heavily and Kibum is dabbing sweat off his forehead with a napkin. 

“I think he might win…” Sehun’s mouth twists. 

“He won’t beat Changmin,” Jongin protests. 

“Wait, yeah. He messed up a little, right?” Junmyeon pitches in, but Sehun and Jongin shake their heads. 

“Messing up doesn’t  _ really _ matter in the big picture. You can definitely fuck up and still beat out clean skates,” Sehun tells him. “But I’m just saying--” 

“Yeah, but  _ politics  _ won’t let him win,” Jongin points out. “Changmin would be second then, and a rookie would’ve beat him. Plus that means he would’ve squeezed Jinki off the podium.” 

“Jinks will get squeezed off the podium regardless with that skate,” Sehun argues. “And it’s happened before. Last year, remember at the US Nationals? Bradie Tennell beat Nagasu.” 

“I still don’t think he’ll beat Changmin,” Jongin murmurs, and he’s right when the scores come up, putting Taemin in a comfortable third-place spot, but he still gasps in disbelief. 

“279.44… oh my gosh, he almost pushed Minho,” Jongin claps a hand to his mouth, furiously calculating in his head. “That’s--that’s--” 

“About 0.75 of a point,” Jongdae supplies. 

“Less than a point difference between Minho and Taemin.” Sehun’s feet tap on the metal stadium floors excitedly. “Jesus Christ, this night is just sensational.” 

“Who uses sensational in a sentence?” Jongin chortles, reaching for the popcorn with relaxed shoulders now that the rest of their team has skated. “So there’s no way the remaining two are gonna move the podium, is there?” 

“Nah. They’ll be fifth and sixth,” Sehun waves it off. “You still wanna watch?” 

“Nope, let’s go find them.” 

“Wait, what about me?” Jongdae asks. “I can’t go in the back.” 

“Oh. Well then, stay here with Myeonnie and watch. We’ll be back!” Sehun and Jongin clamor down from the stands, ignoring Jongdae and Junmyeon’s protests behind them. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi! Hope you guys will like this little story :3 Uhhhh'nnn I know all the skating terminology and stuff can get confusing, but I hope I explained it well enough and it'll get easier and clearer as the chapters progress, I promise <3  
> Thank you as always to editor/beta/co-writer/idea generator/actually-I-go-to-her-for-everything: Aranee for having infinite patience and staying up wayyy past her bedtime to help me ^_^


	2. Chapter 2

Jongin flashes his credential to the security guard standing outside the skater’s entrance and bows slightly in appreciation as the man holds the door open for him. Inside the dark, musty hallway underneath the stadium, a vaguely familiar odor hits Jongin’s nostrils as he jogs down the rubber mats. While the combined smell of musty sweat, dirty socks, and stale popcorn kernels should have grated on Jongin’s sense, to him it smells like home. It’s oddly comforting, present in every rink he steps foot in, and reassures him that he’s right where he belongs. When he yanks on the door of the locker room, he’s promptly greeted with a shout of excitement from Jinki, who currently has Taemin’s smiling head tucked under his shoulder playfully. Sehun’s right on Jongin’s heels and he makes a beeline for Minho, who’s sitting on the bench, rolling out his ankle, having freed it from the constraints of his boot. 

“Sunbae!” Sehun barrels straight into Minho’s waiting arms, vaguely smelling of makeup and sweat and spandex. “You did it.” 

“Of course.” Minho pats Sehun’s head lightly. “And you did, too!” He beckons to Jongin, who also gets pulled into a hug. “Nini, did you watch?” 

“Duh. Sunbae, your Triple Axel cleared the boards. Did you see the replay?” 

“Yes,” Minho chortles. “I wasn’t paying attention. I was so focused.” 

“I know! I could feel your gaze from the very tippy top of the stands.” Jongin expands his hands to exaggerate. “I’m so glad you’re finally back.” 

“It feels so good to be back,” Minho sighs, reaching down to undo his other skate. Jongin shuffles over to Jinki, who towers over him with his skates half untied, and wraps his arms around Jinki’s waist. 

“So good,” Jongin tells him. “You did so good.” 

“Thank you, Nini.” Jinki releases Taemin in order to clap Jongin on the back. “Jesus, I’m just glad I landed the Quad-Triple.” 

“It was perfect,” Jongin insists. “When you landed it, we all cheered like crazy.”

“I’m getting too old for this,” Jinki sighs when he finally sits down amidst the general chaos and begins pulling at the laces of his skates. He’s greeted by a chorus of protests, but Jinki waves them away with a twinkle in his eye. “The young ones are all crushing me these days.” All heads turn to Taemin, who is methodically wiping down the blades of his skates with a microfiber towel to make sure the steel won’t rust. 

“Aw, hyung, don’t say that--” Taemin’s cheeks are still flushed pink from exertion and the wind whipping in his face. 

“But it’s true, isn’t it?” Minho hops over from the adjacent bench to hook his arm around Taemin’s shoulder. “You even almost beat me with a pop.” 

“Dunno what’s wrong with my Flip these days,” Taemin murmurs. “Never was my strongest jump.” 

“Every jump of yours is strong,” Jongin proffers, and promptly feels his heart quicken as Taemin meets his awed gaze. 

The thing about Lee Taemin is that he feels so…  _ untouchable.  _ Despite seeing each other everyday at the rink, being partnered up for off-ice workouts and sprint relays, and sharing the same coach, Jongin feels as if he barely knows him. His aura goes far beyond his young age; Jongin’s not even a year younger than him, but the difference between them feels as if Taemin is leagues above him--which, credentially speaking, he is. Having spent nearly half of his life within the National scene, Lee Taemin is experienced, even if tonight was his senior debut. He knows how to deal with the ever-rising surge of fame and interest surrounding him, while for Jongin, the small press conference and interview after the best skate of his life had been enough to make him fidget nervously. 

“You will get used to it,” Kibum had told him. “Eventually, you’ll learn how to articulate yourself. Press coverage and image is just as important as your skills.” Now, Jongin finds himself wondering how Taemin built his image. 

“A popped Single Flip is not strong enough,” Taemin says with a hint of self-frustration, and Jongin suddenly feels very, very small. “Popping”, which is turning a planned multi-revolution jump into a Single revolution in mid-air is a stupid mistake, and both of them know this. “I gave away seven perfectly good points.” 

“Let loose, Taeminnie. It was a very, very good skate for your senior debut. Especially the fact that you were able to make up a ten point difference and beat out two people above you for a third place finish overall.” Jinki ruffles Taemin’s hair. “I’m so proud of you.” 

“Alright!” Minho stands up and claps his hands, pointing to each person in turn, starting with Jinki. “Senior men’s pewter!” Jinki claps along with everyone else. “Senior men’s bronze!” Taemin ducks his head at the applause. “Junior men’s bronze!” Jongin’s face heats up. “Senior men’s silver!” 

“YESSIR!” Sehun whoops when Minho points to himself, then gestures to himself before Minho can do so. “A failure.” A shout goes up in the locker room. 

“Searching for compliments!” Jinki accuses, hopping over with one skate still on to Sehun, who’s backing up towards the opposite wall with a mischievous smile on his face, and gripping him in a headlock. “A season’s best score, a top ten finish at your first Novice Nationals, what more do you want, hmm? You want a load of this?” Jinki makes to flick Sehun’s forehead and Sehun trips over the trashcan in the corner to get away from him. 

“Nononnonoono, sunbae,” Sehun shrieks and grabs ahold of Minho who wheezes with laughter and shoves Sehun right back into Jinki’s grip. “AH!” Even Taemin hides a smile behind his hand as Sehun claps a hand to his forehead and slumps down against Minho, sniffling in pain. 

“Sit down, sunbae, you’ll injure yourself with one skate untied like that,” Jongin slides down the wall, clutching his sides with laughter. “Ah, I wish Yixing were here.” 

“When will he be back again?” Taemin asks at large. 

“Umm, Chinese Nats were in December, but he said he’d be back to training next week,” Jongin answers quickly. Maybe a little too quickly. Taemin nods and goes back to untying his skates. 

“Erm, Myeonnie just texted me,” Sehun announces to the locker room. “So we’ll be going now. We’ll see you guys back at the hotel?” 

“My room number is 608,” Jinki calls as Jongin gets dragged out by Sehun. “We’re celebrating tonight!” 

“Is Kibum coming?” 

“Maybe. BRING SNACKS!” is the final thing Jongin hears before the heavy door slams shut. They run for the sake of excitement, caught up in the elation of another successful competition all around. Sehun whoops as they make it out into the open and without stopping, throws himself straight into a Double Axel, hopping around neatly on one knee in a perfect landing position after to minimize the impact of landing with no momentum to carry him backwards on hard ground. Not one to be outdone, Jongin shakes out his legs and shuttles his arms straight up and over his head for his double Axel. Sehun claps, impressed. 

“You should add that to your program,” Sehun suggests as they take off at a jog again back towards the main entrance towards the bleachers. 

“Why? Double Axel’s are nothing worth in Junior Men’s. Everybody has a Triple in their program these days,” Jongin rolls his eyes. 

“Not to replace your Triple, of course. I meant in a three-jump sequence. Like, Lutz-Step-Axel.” 

“Wacky sequence,” Jongin laughs as they ascend the steps against the throng of people leaving. 

“Go big or go home.” Sehun pulls Junmyeon into a hug the second they make their way back to their original spot. 

“You left me alone,” Junmyeon reaches up to poke Sehun’s cheek. 

“Sorry, had to celebrate.” 

“I’ll be heading home,” Jongdae says as the four of them descend the bleachers behind the general crowd of people now that the last event of this year’s Nationals is finished. “Thank you for inviting me to come watch, Jongini.” 

“Yes! Thank you for coming as support. And tell Baekhyun he’s a bitch for missing out,” Jongin laughs as he lightly embraces his childhood friend. 

“You know him, he’s probably glued to his computer still.” Jongdae waves goodbye to everyone. “Good job, Sehun! Bye, Myeon.” 

“I’ll see you back at the hotel,” Jongin calls to Sehun and Junmyeon as they depart, no doubt to celebrate Sehun’s successful skate in their own way. “I just wanna go find Kibum to ask him about Grand Prix assignments.” 

“You mean wait for Taemin?” 

“NO!” Jongin protests, lowering his hoodie and rearranging his messy hair. Jongdae only winks. 

“Good luck.” 

\--

“T-Taemin-sunbae.” The skater looks up in surprise to see Jongin leaning against a pole, showing off his long legs in skinny jeans and a casual hoodie. His Converse-clad feet tap nervously on the ground even though he poses somewhat casually and his hands are shoved into the pocket of his unzipped black parka. Taemin tucks his phone back into his pocket as Jongin begins to walk next to Taemin on the side where the suitcase with his skates and costume isn’t in the way. 

“Can I help you, Nini?” Everyone calls him Nini, but the way Taemin says it still forces Jongin to fight off a blush. 

“Good job today,” Jongin begins, and stumbles a bit when Taemin stops walking to stare intently at Jongin. “Sunbae?” 

“Do you really think I did good today?” Taemin asks. Jongin can’t tell what the elder is thinking; his eyes hold no trace of emotion. Jongin swallows nervously, but still tries to sound somewhat intelligent with his answer. 

“Yes. For a Senior debut, you did incredibly well. Even if you popped, you still made third place. That tells me that with an extra seven or so points, you could’ve beaten Changmin. It’s not really about how you did tonight, it’s more about the potential you showed the judges, right?” Taemin resumes walking, shoving a hand in his pocket as he does so. 

“Nini, do you know what the Americans are scoring? 330 combined points. Do you know Nathan Chen’s technical score? 130 points.” Jongin nods, all-too aware of the young American superstar that’s been around ever since Jongin was still toddling around on the ice. 

“That’s  _ just _ his technique. Without even factoring in his program component score--his artistic score. He’s going to be at Worlds. Who else is going to be at Worlds, Nini?” Taemin’s tone is not condescending, but Jongin still feels like he’s being treated as if he were six. 

“Yuzuru Hanyu.” 

“Yes. One of us--Changmin, Ming, Jinki, or I will have to beat those two to secure three places next year.” Jongin feels his heart sink as he realizes that Taemin is absolutely right. It’s next to impossible. Taemin continues, the self-loathing in his voice returning. “My  _ potential  _ is not gonna cut it.” 

“Sunbae,” Jongin wants to say something to comfort him, but he’s at a loss of words. “Don’t be so hard on yourself,” but Jongin knows that doesn’t help whatsoever. He won’t even take his own advice. Taemin doesn’t answer, mostly because he knows just how stupid it sounds. “Popping isn’t a mental problem,” Jongin murmurs, mostly to himself. 

“What was that?” 

“P-popping isn’t a mental problem.” 

“How is it not a mental problem? You land Triple Flips over and over in practice. I land Triple Flips over and over in practice. What’s your ratio?” 

“Ten out of ten.” Jongin could do a Triple Flip in his sleep. 

“Of course it is, you’re already working on your Quad Flip. Suddenly, in the competition, I seize up and I pop the easiest jump in my program. How is that not mental?” 

“It’s technique-based,” Jongin insists, and he would elaborate, but they’re already walking out into a hoard of reporters who are clamoring for a few words with Taemin. Taemin looks up at him with the slightest trace of curiosity in his eyes. 

“I have to go now. Find me during the celebration.” 

\--

“They’re out,” Taemin is the first one to know, perching on the edge of Jinki’s bed with a small cup of grapes clutched in one hand and his phone in the other. “Check your em--holy shit.” 

“What? What? Who’s going?” Sehun clamors to peer over Taemin’s shoulder, and Jongin gapes when Taemin doesn’t even flinch, only holding the phone up so that Sehun can see the international assignments better. “TAEMIN?” 

“Taemin what? What?” Jinki’s fumbling with his phone now, too, and Jongin catches his breath as he sees the list. 

“HE MADE WORLDS!” 

“He’s going to Worlds?” 

“Taemin?” Jongin is the first to rush to Minho’s side, clutching him tightly as he feels Minho freeze up in shock. 

“They sent Taemin to Worlds?” Jinki stares harder at his screen, as if that might rearrange the words. But right there, Jongin can see it with his own eyes in front of his own screen. 

**2019 ISU World Championships**

Initial 1: LEE Taemin 

Initial 2: N/A

Initial 3: N/A

_ Replacement 1: CHOI Minho _

_ Replacement 2: SHIM Changmin _

_ Replacement 3: LEE Jinki _

**2019-20 ISU Grand Prix Series**

**Skate America**

Initial 1: LEE Taemin

Initial 2: SHIM Changmin

_ Replacement 1: LEE Jinki _

_ Replacement 2: CHOI Minho _

_ Replacement 3: LEE Hyukjae _

**Skate Canada**

Initial 1: JUNG Yunho

Initial 2: LEE Jinki

_ Replacement 1: LEE Hyukjae _

_ Replacement 2: CHO Kyuhyun _

_ Replacement 3: SHIN Donghee _

**International de France**

Initial 1: LEE Taemin 

Initial 2: LEE Hyukjae

_ Replacement 1: CHOI Minho _

_ Replacement 2: SHIM Changmin _

_ Replacement 3: CHO Kyuhyun _

**Cup of China**

Initial 1: CHOI Minho

Initial 2: SHIM Changmin

_ Replacement 1: LEE Jinki _

_ Replacement 2: LEE Taemin _

_ Replacement 3: JUNG Yunho _

**Rostelecom Cup**

Initial 1: LEE Jinki

Initial 2: LEE Hyukjae

_ Replacement 1: JUNG Yunho _

_ Replacement 2: LEE Taemin _

_ Replacement 3: SHIN Donghee _

**NHK Trophy**

Initial 1: CHOI Minho

Initial 2: JUNG Yunho

_ Replacement 1: LEE Hyukjae _

_ Replacement 2: SHIM Changmin _

_ Replacement 3: LEE Jinki _

**2019-20 ISU Junior Grand Prix Series**

**JGP FRANCE**

**JGP UNITED STATES**

Initial 2: KIM Jongin

**JGP LATVIA**

**JGP RUSSIA**

**JGP POLAND**

Initial 1: KIM Jongin

**JGP CROATIA**

**JGP ITALY**

“Where are you going, Nini?” Sehun asks, still crouching over Taemin’s shoulder. 

“US and Poland.” But Jongin scrolls right back up to the Worlds assignments and nope; it hasn’t disappeared, Taemin is very much South Korea’s nominee. 

“Why not Minho?” Jinki’s the first to say it out loud, breaking the ice that has slowly creeped across the room. 

“You know as well as I do,” Minho murmurs. “They’re betting.”  _ Or weeding him out. _

South Korea’s best bet would’ve been to send either Changmin or Minho with the one place that they have for the 2019 World Championships in Saitama, Japan. Seasoned professionals, always consistent and reliable, and respectively the gold and silver National medalists that night, they should’ve been the obvious choice. But by placing all the pressure squarely on young and inexperienced Taemin’s shoulders, there were only two inferences to draw from this decision. One, Jongin knew, was that they were giving Taemin a chance to prove himself against the world’s best as a dark horse. The other was far more sinister, and Taemin was also well-aware of it; if he skated disastrously at Worlds, which would mean yet another year with only one measly spot, Taemin had effectively dug his own grave and turned the public’s favor against him, more or less ending his career at the international stage. Minho is absolutely right; the Federation is gambling, and Taemin is the playing card. 

“You okay, Taeminnie?” Jinki glances over to where Sehun’s tentative hand rests millimeters away from Taemin’s back, as if afraid to touch him. 

“Yep,” Taemin says quietly, brushing his hair back from his face with an unassuming smile on his face. “I’m good. Worlds… and an invitation to Skate America and France.” 

“They’re really laying it all out on the line, aren’t they?” Minho’s voice is harsher than he means it to be. Jongin only hugs him tighter, but Minho’s hand brushes across Jongin’s shoulders gently, as if reassuring him that his pride isn’t wounded by being left off. Jongin knows better. 

“It is beyond our jurisdiction,” Taemin shrugs. “I’ll have to train harder… make sure that my program is ready at Worlds. In any case, what I did tonight is simply unacceptable.” 

“It’s not fair,” Jinki blurts, rubbing his temples. “To put so much pressure on a newly-debuted skater, it’s almost unheard of…” 

“It is not unheard of at all,” Taemin shoots back at his hyung. “Bradie Tennell made the Olympic Team last year without anybody even hearing about her for years. She was chosen over Ashley Wagner. Was it cruel? Absolutely. Was it fair? No, of course not. But skating is just far too progressive these days to take into consideration such things as fairness.” Taemin’s eyes are blazing with ambition now. “There has always been a certain lethality to sports politics. You can either keep up or give up.” 

“You better keep up,” Minho warns Taemin. “I’m telling you right now. Do  _ not  _ waste your shot.” 

“No. This was supposed to be your spot,” Taemin jabs a finger at Minho. “You and I both know that.” Sehun shrinks back from the deadly aura that Taemin radiates as he rises to his feet and slips his phone back into his sweatpants. “I won’t let you down, hyung.” There’s a moment of silence in the room for a second, then Minho nods. 

“Good.” He turns to Jongin, who releases him from his death grip. “And you. Don’t waste your JGP chances. You can get a lot of press coverage with being sent to America.” Jongin nods excitedly. 

“Does anyone want a drink?” Jinki asks as Sehun turns the music back on. 

“Are you sure you guys should be drinking?” Sehun asks lazily, accepting a cup of soju from Jinki. “I mean for me, the season’s over, but for you…” 

“Excuse you, Grand Prix Series  _ start  _ a season, okay? We’re all done here. Except for Taemin, and he doesn’t drink anyways,” Jinki dismisses as Taemin shakes his head to decline. “Cheers, everyone. Taeminnie, come here. Toast your grapes.” Jongin giggles as Taemin scoots in between Minho and Jinki, holding up his cup of grapes to the shots of soju. “To a successful season, and to an even better one next year!” 

“Plans, before you drink,” Minho demands. “Sehun, go.” 

“Gonna stay in Novice one more year and make the podium.” Sehun tilts his head back and drinks. “Jongin?” 

“Present new programs at JGP and compete as Senior at Nationals next year. Minho-sunbae.” 

“Make Grand Prix finals and beat Changmin’s ass. Taemin.” 

“Get us our Worlds spots back and make Grand Prix finals. Jinki-hyung.” 

“Skate my final year.” 

“Wait, WHAT?” Jongin splutters on his shot and Taemin drops a grape on the hotel floor. “You’re retiring?!” 

“Is this really so surprising?” Jinki looks around at all the shocked faces. “I want next year’s Nationals to be my final year.” 

“But what about 2022 Olympics?” Taemin asks, looking thoroughly dejected. Jinki wraps an arm around him. 

“That’s for youngsters like you. Not me anymore. I’ll probably get into coaching, or maybe commentating. Maybe I’ll go back to school… there’s a lot of options for me. Either way, I’ve had a good run. It’s all up to you guys now.” 

“But sunbae--” Sehun begins to protest, but Jinki shushes him. 

“It’s not completely decided yet, okay? There’s still some time, I’ll still be around. Kibum doesn’t even know and he’ll probably blow the roof off this place if he finds out. Let’s just keep it on the down low.” Jinki raises his glass. “Cheers!” 

“Cheers,” A chorus of voices answers him. 

\--

A few hours later, Jongin’s tipsy, almost drunk. He hardly ever drinks in order to maintain the body that he needs to train, but it’s always nice to let loose a little at the end of every competitive season, even though it means he’s a total lightweight. Sehun’s already asleep on the queen sized bed, and beside him, Jinki is drunkenly texting Junmyeon to pick him up and take him back to his own room. It’s two AM, Minho’s already left, and Taemin is quietly writing something down at the desk tucked into a corner of the room. 

“Taemin-sunbae,” Jongin slurs, and Taemin sighs a little as he wraps an arm around Jongin’s waist to keep him from stumbling straight into the lamp. It hardly qualifies as unusual skinship, seeing as they train together everyday and Taemin’s seen him in far worse conditions (back-to-back program run-throughs had had Jongin curled up on the ice, gasping for breath one time), but a tingle still runs up Jongin’s spine as Taemin stands up and firmly places Jongin in the seat, then sits on the table himself. 

“What is it, Nini?” 

“Popping,” Jongin slurs. 

“You’re way too drunk to be explaining technique to me, Nini.” 

“No…” Jongin shakes his head. “I can explain.” 

“Please do, then.” 

“Why do you think you pop?” Jongin asks. Taemin glances at him briefly. 

“Everyone knows that it’s psychological. I popped it in the short, lost confidence in the free and turned it into a Single. It’s the same concept as circling the rink over and over again, afraid to go into a jump. You just get caught in this mental loop.” Taemin sighs, remembering the silly mistake in his first program that had put him in fifth place after the short. By sheer luck, he had managed to squeeze himself into the final warm up group for the free skate. 

“No,” Jongin huffs. “That’s not it at all.” 

“Jesus Christ--” Taemin catches Jongin just before his head thuds against the wooden table. “Nini, you’re so drunk. What’s your room number?” 

“I’m fine,” Jongin insists, looking up at Taemin through an alcohol-tinted haze of long eyelashes and pretty eyes. “Listen…” 

“I am listening.” Taemin’s expression is caught between amusement and impatience. That’s no good. Jongin doesn’t want him to wait for him. 

“So--” Jongin quickly rips off the piece of paper from the hotel notepad that Taemin was writing on and sketches a quick isosceles triangle. “For skating jumps, during the takeoff, our arms are already against our body before our legs cross in the air. So we look like a triangle.” 

“Of course. Jongin, I’m not a beginner--” Jongin holds up a hand. 

“Just waiiitttttt,” Jongin slurs. Taemin sighs. 

“Why?” Jongin questions. “Why not--” he flips the paper upside down so that the triangle’s tip is now “on the ground”. “Why not this way?” 

“Because if you try and balance a triangle on the tip, it will fall over.” Taemin already knows all of this, brushes the explanation away impatiently. “Kibum’s given me this analogy already, Nini.” 

“Yahhhh,” Jongin nods. “If your legs cross in the air before your arms pull in, you will make this triangle.” He taps the inverted one. “Your upper body is spread out much more than your lower body, and so your rotation will be unstable.” 

“That’s what I  _ just said,  _ Nini _.”  _

Jongin cooes. “You’re so smartttt.” Taemin’s torn between laughter and curiosity. 

“Okay, so when you pull your legs together faster than your arms, you’ll fall over. But your body will not naturally let you fall over so easily. So what happens is that your legs will automatically  _ pop-- _ ” Jongin pops his mouth and giggles to himself at the noise, “out to the same width as your arms are by reflex.”

“A rectangle,” Taemin murmurs, as Jongin draws two equilateral triangles on either side of the inverted triangle to create a rectangle. 

“And when your legs pop out in the air and your arms are too far apart, you can’t create enough rotational momentum for a Quad anymore and you get a popped jump.” Jongin claps loudly for himself. “Ima genius,” he giggles, and slumps back down to rest his head in his arms. Taemin studies the shaky diagram for just a minute more. 

“Arms need to pull in faster,” Taemin mumbles. He looks back down at Jongin, who has fallen asleep in a drunken stupor. 

Taemin slowly nods to himself. “Hyung, which room is Jongin staying in?” Taemin asks quietly, sliding off the desk gracefully. Jinki looks up from his phone. 

“Down the hall, 616.” Taemin rummages around in Jongin’s pockets until he finds his hotel key card. 

“Some help, hyung?” In a joint effort, Jinki carefully drapes Jongin’s limp figure over Taemin’s back and opens the door for him. Jongin’s surprisingly light, and Taemin easily dumps Jongin on his bed, pulls the covers up around him, and sets out a bottle of water for his teammate before quietly closing the door. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> tag yourself, I'm drunk!jongin treating taemin like he's an actual baby  
> UM EXCUSE ME? ALL THE COMMENTS YOU GUYS LEFT ON THE FIRST CHAPTER? I WANNA HUG ALL OF YOU SO BAD, YOU GUYS MAKE ME SOOOOO EXCITED TO SHARE THIS WITH YOU!!! (Aranee is of the same mind) <\-- She's always leaving cute comments in the comment section :3  
> I hope you guys enjoy the update! Lemme know how you like it :D  
> <3


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter takes place 2 weeks after Nationals.

The sky is still dark and dotted with stars as Jongin shuffles his way into the rink, dragging his suitcase behind him. Eleven years of waking up before the sunrise has never made the initial grogginess easier to get over, but Jongin waves excitedly when he sees Yixing pull into the parking lot of the rink. 

“Welcome back!” Jongin calls even though he knows Yixing can’t hear him. He leans against the handle of his suitcase in the middle of the parking lot to wait for Yixing, who hurriedly grabs his bag and skates from the back of his car, jogs over to Jongin and offers a wide hug. 

“Welcome back,” Jongin repeats, smiling at the elder. “How was your trip?” 

“It was good!” Yixing answers in broken Korean as he falls into step with Jongin. “And congratulations to you as well at Nationals.” 

“Thank you, hyung.” Jongin holds the door open and pulls his suitcase to the side. “After you.” 

“Thanks, Nini.” Jongin’s greeted by a figure flying into him and shoving a bouquet of roses into his hand. “Wh--” 

“My Junior bronze medalist!” Jonghyun’s ecstatic and proud smile greets him as Jongin holds him at arms length to get a good look at his attacker. 

“Jjong!” Jongin pulls him into a hug this time. “Thank you, these are so gorgeous.” 

“I’m so sorry that I couldn’t be there, especially since Nationals were so close to home this year.” The light in Jonghyun’s eyes dims a little. “And you all skated  _ so  _ well, too, I should’ve been there to cheer you guys on…” 

“Don’t feel bad, hyung,” Jongin is quick to reassure. “You had that broadcast, it wasn’t like you missed it on purpose.” 

“That’s what I’ve been trying to tell him,” Minho murmurs as the trio walk into the locker room together. Jongin drops his stuff at his usual corner and shrugs off his long padded coat in exchange for a lighter jacket, then layers a vest over that. 

“Ah, it was Taemin’s senior debut, too,” Jonghyun laments after greeting Yixing with a similar hug and another bouquet seemingly conjured out of nowhere. “And you! China’s national team!” 

“Yes,” Yixing agrees, clutching his flowers tightly. “I did well.” 

“Yes, you did! All that training away from home really paid off,” Jonghyun pulls Yixing under his shoulder. “Where’s little Taeminnie?” 

“On the ice already,” Minho answers. 

“Wait, what?” Jongin looks up in surprise from replacing his fluffy skate soakers for skate guards. 

“Yeah, he got here like, an hour earlier than we usually do.” Minho shrugs, swinging his arms in a wide circle to warm up a little. 

“I’ve always wondered what these are for,” Jonghyun remarks, picking up one of Jongin’s soakers. 

“Those are made of microfiber material inside to soak up any moisture from the blades after we’re done skating,” Jongin tells him. “And these are plastic skate guards. We walk around the ground with these on our blades to prevent ruining our edges.” 

“Edges?” 

“Early morning skating lesson,” Jongin declares, turning his boot over to show Jonghyun the blade. “Skating blades are not flat. They’re sharpened in a half-hollowed-out shape to create two sharp edges. When we skate on the outside edges, we’re pressing on these.” Jongin relaxes his ankles and lets his feet drop out to either side. “Inside edges are these.” Jongin brings his knees together to press on imaginary inside edges. “We don’t want our edges to get flat or nicked because of concrete floors, so that’s why we use guards. And that’s also why most floors in the rink are rubber, because it tends to be softer on unprotected blades.” 

“Ahhhh, interesting!” Unlike most other people, Jonghyun listens intently to the entirety of Jongin’s explanation, genuinely engrossed in the sport that takes up most of his friends’ time. “That was very thorough, Nini.” 

“No problem, hyung. Also you didn’t have to get up at,” Jongin checks his watch, “4AM to give these to us.” 

“It’s okay,” Jonghyun insists. “It’s the least I can do for missing Nationals--” 

“For the last time,” Minho interrupts, “It’s  _ okay. _ ” 

“What’s okay?” Jinki pokes his head into the locker room with puffy eyes. “JJONG!” 

“JINKS!” Jinki tackles Jonghyun with a shout and Yixing winces as the noise echoes around the locker room. 

“So much noise,” he tells Jongin, who nods in agreement. “Too early.” 

“It is nice to be back together, though,” Jongin speaks slower for the sake of his foreign hyung. “Early mornings are better because everyone suffers together.” 

“Trueeee.” 

“Jongin, ready?” Minho stands up when Jongin finishes rolling his ankles out. “Yixing, come?” 

“Where are you going?” Jonghyun asks. 

“Running, before we get our skates on. To warm up. You wanna come?” Minho teases. 

“Nope, I’ll leave that to you guys.” 

“Thought so. Jinki--” Minho calls, but Jinki motions for them to go ahead, still talking with Jonghyun about Nationals. 

“Okay.” The trio push open the doors to the rink and set off on a fast jog around the building’s outside perimeter in silence. Jongin can see puffs of his breath in the frigid February air as he keeps up with Minho’s pace, Yixing trailing just behind him. “How many?” Jongin asks as Minho falls behind Yixing and Jongin picks his pace up to lead the second lap. “Three?” 

“Four will make a mile,” Yixing points out. 

“Let’s do four, I’m freezing.” Jongin falls to the back of the parade to let Yixing lead the third, then Jinki joins them outside just in time to lead the fourth. 

“How many is this?” Jinki asks. 

“This is our fourth, your first.” Minho stops when they reach the front door again and Jongin shakes out his limbs. His body feels warm but his ears and fingers are completely numb. Back inside, Jongin runs through his usual warm-up routine--stretching, jumping, rolling out, and stabilizes his landing knee with KT tape before pulling his skates on and finally stepping foot on the glasslike sheet of ice. The surface is still generally pretty clean, but Taemin’s edges have already carved out long, clean patterns and left scattered flakes of snow over the ice. 

“G’morning,” Jongin murmurs, bowing to Kibum who sits on the barriers in his usual spot, swinging his legs as he watches Taemin out of the corner of his eye. 

“Morning, Nini. I’ll take you in an hour.” Kibum beckons for Taemin to come back after a Triple Lutz, but he ignores Kibum, drawing a circle in the air to indicate he wants to try again. “This kid doesn’t listen,” Kibum complains. Jongin chuckles politely before pushing off to warm up. 

It only takes a few pushes for Jongin to gather enough speed so that the air whipping past his face seems colder than the temperature of the rink. He blinks tears away from skating into the wind and they travel in strange rivulets down his face. After a few laps he begins his exercises; skating on one leg whilst maintaining a deep knee bend, alternating the blade’s edges and gathering speed all the way down one side of the rink by making half-circle lobes, switching legs on the other side of the rink. Then a series of footwork sequences that start off simple, but increase in complexity. As Jongin continues his warm up, he’s not only settling down into his blades and body, but also acutely monitoring the condition of the ice this morning: is it softer, meaning his edges will carve deeper into the ice and give him more speed? Or is it harder, thus forcing Jongin to pay more attention to balance and giving him less stability when he starts jumping later this morning? Jongin skates using the entire surface now, following  _ crossover _ patterns that don’t necessarily go straight down the long side of the oval rink, but rather snake across the whole of the ice surface. Somewhere in the middle of his warm-up, Jinki, Minho, and Yixing join him on the ice and Jongin waves briefly to Jonghyun as the elder leaves for work at the national radio station. 

Once on the ice, there’s not as much actual talking that happens, although the camaraderie of training together still exists. Save Kibum’s occasional screaming and the EDM that plays from the aux cord, the only sounds are the rips of Jongin’s blades as he presses deep into the ice with his edges, remembering to stay low in his knees, keep his shoulders down, and raise his head up. Inevitably, the music is cut off about thirty minutes into Jongin’s practice, just as he’s started warming up his spins, and is replaced by the familiar beginning strings of ‘Romeo and Juliet’. Taemin’s running through his free skate, then. At this point in the season, everybody in the rink knows each other’s programs by heart, and it's decently easy to prepare and react in order to give that skater the right-of-way on the ice. Which is why Jongin’s completely floored when, instead of going into his Triple Flip like Taemin usually does, he veers off to the right and circles back around to set up for a Quad Loop. 

“JONG!” Kibum calls, but it’s too late. Taemin’s hands reach out instinctively to shove Jongin out of the way and Jongin stumbles back, gasping as the breath is knocked out of him when he hits the wall. 

“OH, shit.” Jinki comes flying down the ice and crouches down next to Jongin, who shakily pulls himself into a sitting position. “Are you alright, Nini?” Minho’s noticed, too, and circles around the rink close to the walls to approach Jongin. 

“You good?” 

“Yeah,” Jongin accepts his teammates hands and pulls himself up, dusting the snow off of his pants, “I’m good.” A little confused and upset, but good. Taemin doesn’t even stop to check up on him, instead landing the Quad Loop with ease and flying right into his next spin. Jongin leans against the sideboard to catch his breath. 

“Maybe sit down,” Yixing suggests, tugging on Jongin’s wrist to get him to sit on the benches in the penalty box. “You are not hurt, right?” 

“No, no.” Jongin checks over both his hands to make sure he isn’t bleeding. The rest of the group has stopped skating as well, instead going over to the boards to sip on water or blow runny noses until Taemin finishes his run-through. Kibum glides over from the music box and peers at Jongin retying his skate on the bench. 

“You’re not hurt?” 

“No, coach, I just didn’t know he changed his program layout this morning.” Jongin looks up reassuringly. “I’m good.” 

“Cool. Also, where’s that brat Sehun?” 

“Probably overslept.” Jongin shrugs as Taemin passes them, taking a lap to cool down and wiping the sweat off his face. Jongin watches him stroke in silence, an uncomfortable knot settling in his chest. 

“So are you gonna go apologize?” Jinki asks, leaning back onto the sideboards on his elbows and sticking the heels of his blades in the ice to keep himself stable when Taemin stops at his side. Taemin glances at him while guzzling water. 

“To who?” 

“Nini!” Jinki says indignantly, gesturing over to Jongin who’s still sitting in the penalty box, looking rather forlorn as he tugs his pants leg back down after retying his skate. “You  _ shoved  _ him!”

“Oh! My god.” Taemin sets down his water bottle and skates over, hopping into the penalty box and kneeling down beside Jongin. “Holy shit, are you okay?” 

“Yeah, sunbae, I’m fine,” Jongin insists, looking up at Taemin. “Sorry for getting in your way, I didn’t know--” 

“Are you hurt?” One of Taemin’s gloved hands reaches out for Jongin’s landing knee. “Is your knee okay?” 

“Yes, it was just a typical stumble.” 

“I’m so sorry, Nini, I have tunnel vision when I skate, I don’t think about anything but the program.” Taemin offers his hand and Jongin’s heart pounds as he accepts it and stands up to step back on the ice. 

“No, it’s okay,” Jongin shakes his head. “You had the right-of-way. I was in your way.” 

“You didn’t know,” Taemin bites the inside of his cheek. “Okay, so from now on, I’m circling back after the Quad-Triple down in the corner--” Taemin’s breath is hot on Jongin’s neck as he leans in to explain the new pattern, pointing at the general space of the rink that he’ll take up. “--back around this way, into a Quad Loop. And then from there I just pick up with the spin. Make sense?” 

“Yeah, I got it now, sunbae. Thank you. I’m really sorry again--” 

“Not your fault.” And Taemin pushes off to resume practice, leaving Jongin with a sore bum and an even bigger crush than before. 

\--

“And where have  _ you  _ been?” Kibum’s standing with his hands on his hips as Sehun finally joins them two hours later from when he usually arrives. “Brat.” 

“I was at Junmyeon’s and I had to go home to get my stuff,” Sehun explains, and Kibum’s eyes widen as his mouth pinches in frustration. Sehun is unperturbed. “Sorry,” he adds, not looking repentant in the slightest. 

“Just go,” Kibum sighs, waving Sehun off to warm up. “Aish, out of all five skaters,” Kibum turns to the general rink and raises his voice to be heard, “Can any of you be  _ UNPROBLEMATIC?!”  _ Minho and Jinki ignore him, currently in a deadlock over jumps. Minho, ever the competitor, circles while Jinki sets up and lands a gorgeous Triple Axel, then follows up with his own. 

“I’m just trying to  _ practice, _ ” Jinki spits at Minho playfully as they pass by each other, but Minho shoots him a glare and sets up for Quad Salchow. Jongin glances down the ice at Taemin, who’s back in his usual focused mode, tuning out everything and everyone as he lands jump after jump, working towards consistency, even though Jongin’s only seen him fall twice in two hours. He turns back to Kibum. 

“Anything else, Coach?” 

“No, we’re done for today. Ah, Kyungsoo!” Kibum calls as his coaching partner steps onto the ice with his usual scowl firmly set on his face. “Take Jongin first today, pull him on Quad Flip.” 

“Kay.” Jongin gulps as Kyungsoo sighs irritably. “How are you, Jongin?” 

“Good, Coach-nim.” Kyungsoo is Kibum’s jump specialist, working intently with all of his skaters to perfect their techniques with specific jump-based training. As head coach, Kibum is in charge of overseeing everybody’s training, keeping everyone on schedule, tweaking technique here and there, as well as accompanying his skaters to competitions. Alongside Kyungsoo and Kibum, Minseok completes the coaching team, usually working at the start of every season when he is needed. Jongin’s already eagerly expecting a conversation with the cheerful, creative young choreographer sometime before the month’s end to chat about his two new programs for the upcoming season. Kyungsoo, on the other hand, scares the shit out of Jongin and every other skater even though his technique and coaching are unparalleled in South Korea. More often than not, Kyungsoo is invited to coaching seminars all over the world to glower at young skaters and bark out lectures about front-line jump analysation technology that would make the judging panels’ lives a lot easier and raise expectations for competitors. 

“What is wrong with Quad Flip?” 

“Nothing, but I would like to have it in the program by next season…” Jongin shuffles his skates back and forth until Kyungsoo passes him the harness to strap himself into. 

After Jongin has finished adjusting the straps, which are attached to the harness belt, over his shoulders, Kyungsoo attaches a thin plastic rod to the metal ring of each shoulder strap. Those rods lead up the two ends of a shoulder-wide metal rod respectively, which makes the whole thing look like a swivel. The metal rod is connected to a sturdy pole in Kyungsoo’s hands, which makes the whole construct look like Jongin is a fish dangling on Kyungsoo’s fishing rod. After everything is secured properly, Jongin picks up speed to lead into his jump and Kyungsoo follows close by, keeping the swivel above Jongin’s head. When Jongin kicks his toe pick--the jagged line of teeth near the front of his skate’s blade--into the ice to vault himself up and into rotation, Kyungsoo simultaneously uses the resulting momentum along with his own strength to  _ pull _ Jongin up a little higher than he would reach by himself to enable him to complete four revolutions in the air before landing on one foot--which is exactly what Kibum asked Kyungsoo to do. When Jongin lands, he stumbles a little since the Quad Flip is still unfamiliar to him. Kyungsoo tries hard to secure his landing with the harness by pulling upwards, which also reduces the risk of Jongin injuring himself while falling on the new jump. Of course, Kyungsoo can’t hold Jongin’s entire weight up. 

“Why are you sitting on your ass?” Kyungsoo asks irritably as Jongin lands in a heap on the ice. “I’m trying to hold you up and you still fall.” 

“Sorry.” Jongin gets up immediately. 

“No, you’re not sorry. If you’re sorry, you wouldn’t have done it again.” Kyungsoo huffs as they circle back around to try, try again. Jongin manages to land the next one shakily. “Okay, come here.” Kyungsoo takes advantage of the fact that Jongin is  _ literally  _ attached to him and yanks Jongin back to the wall. “Hold,” he directs, and Jongin takes the pole and holds it out to the side while Kyungsoo demonstrates. 

“If I jump up and land with a straight back, what will happen?” Kyungsoo asks with no trace of a smile. 

“Uhhh,” 

“Get out of this,” Kyungsoo taps Jongin’s belt impatiently, and Jongin unbuckles himself from the harness. “Okay, try.” Jongin jumps straight up and lands with a straight back--or rather, falls down onto his ass. When he looks up pathetically at his coach, Kyungsoo motions for him to get up. 

“Okay. Now jump, but this time, let your body do what feels natural.” Jongin jumps up again and bends at the waist slightly on impact. 

“So what happens?” 

“Erm… My upper body goes forward as my knees also bend?” 

“Yes. Now if your arms must also extend on the landing, what does that mean you have to do?” 

“Instead of pulling my arms straight out to the side on the landing, they have to pull out in front first, and then out to the side.” Jongin demonstrates and Kyungsoo nods. 

“Again.” Jongin straps himself back into the harness and they set off. This time, he lands the Flip nicely. Kyungsoo’s scowl lessens just a little. “Better.” 

\--

“Saw you working on Flip,” Minho says to Jongin from across the locker room as they get out of their skates after the three-hour session on the ice. They have a one-hour group workout together before Jongin gets to go home for the day. 

“Yep,” Jongin wipes his blades down with a towel before tucking them into his soakers. “It’s a work in progress.” 

“You don’t really need a jump as difficult as Flip in Junior Men’s, though?” Minho makes it a question with the intonation of his voice. “You’ll do fine with just your Salchow and Toe.” 

“Well, I can’t rely on those forever,” Jongin yelps when he accidentally lets go of one end of the soaker and the elastic around the top of it acts as a catapult, sending it flying into Taemin’s face. “Ahh! So sorry, sunbae.” The locker room bursts into laughter and even Taemin giggles a little as he tosses the soaker back into Jongin’s hands. Jongin prays he’s not blushing too hard. 

“Getting back at me for earlier this morning?” Taemin questions, and Jongin peeks up at him through his bangs. Is he teasing Jongin? Ohmygod, he  _ is _ , and Jongin is positive that the cute little smirk on his sunbae’s face is directed towards him. 

“What happened earlier today?” Sehun questions. Jongin had forgotten that he’d been late. 

“Taemin pushed Jongin while running his program,” Jinki tells Sehun. “Barrelled over him and didn’t even realize what he did until afterwards.” 

“I didn’t mean to!” Taemin protests. “I get hyper focused, you know this, hyung.” 

“It’s okay,” Jongin tells his skates. 

“So Taemin  _ literally  _ ran Jongin over.” Sehun begins with a shit-eating grin, and Jongin closes his eyes in embarrassment as the locker room breaks into chaos. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I wish Taemin would run me over in practice  
> Then again I wish I still had practice ;-;  
> Hope everyone is staying safe and reading lots of fanfic!  
> Thank you for the comments, I love them so much (but I love you guys more :3)  
> \--  
> **starting from May 6th, I will be going on semi-hiatus until about May 23rd. I still plan on posting up new chapters, but just more infrequently for about ~2 weeks. I'll still be around, though!! This is just a quick PSA :)


	4. Chapter 4

“Woah, the sun is so fucking bright,” Baekhyun murmurs when he gets out of the car, tugging his blue hoodie over his head. Jongdae swats at him incredulously while Chanyeol chuckles.

“How many days has it been since you left the house?” 

“Like, a week, dude. I only leave to get groceries.” 

“No way.” Jongdae gapes at him. “That cannot be good for your health.” 

“I’m thriving, bro.” Baekhyun immediately wrinkles his nose at the smell when he steps into the rink. “Hell no, I’m going back home.” 

“They’re almost done with practice,” Jongdae hisses, pushing Baekhyun further into the lobby of the rink. “You’re gonna be here for like ten minutes, tops.” 

“I can’t believe Nini spends all day here.” Baekhyun glances around at the grey walls, the scuffed benches, and the long, dark hallway with staggered locker room doors. “It doesn’t look too fun.” 

“Nah,  _ that’s _ where all the fun is,” Chanyeol hops onto a tall chair and peers out of the wide window into the rink. 

“True,” Baekhyun sits down on the chair next to Chanyeol. 

“Come wave!” Jongdae insists, tugging on the back of Baekhyun’s hoodie. 

“Are you sure we can interrupt their practice?” 

“We’re not interrupting, just getting a front row seat.” Jongdae shivers as the automatic double doors to the rink open and they’re blasted with freezing cold air. “Jesus.” 

“I’m going back ins--” 

“No!” Jongdae’s shriek causes a couple of curious heads to turn their way. One such face meets Baekhyun’s eyes and everything seems to slow down for him as the skater passes by. 

“Um. On second thought.” Baekhyun obediently scurries after Jongdae to sit next to his friend in the bleachers. Chanyeol joins them after just a minute, squeezing his tall self in between them and wrapping his arms around both of them to share body warmth. Jongin waves happily from on the ice, having caught sight of the trio seated near the plexiglass barriers. 

“Baek, why didn’t you wave?” Chanyeol nudges him.

“Huh?” Baekhyun’s still staring at the mystery skater dressed in a tight black shirt and pants. “Who’s he?” He points. 

“Uh…” Jongdae squints for a second. “I think that’s Yixing. Actually, yeah, that’s gotta be Yixing, because that’s Jinki, that’s Minho, and there are Sehun and Jongin with Taemin.” 

“Yixing,” Baekhyun repeats slowly. As if he had heard Baekhyun, Yixing turns to glance up at them, then speeds up as he skates away. Baekhyun’s eyes rove over Yixing’s ass as he comes flying their way and executes a perfect Triple Lutz right in front of where the trio sits. When he turns to look up at Baekhyun, as if asking for validation, Baekhyun claps his sweater paws together enthusiastically. Yixing turns away again with a little smile on his face. 

“Why didn’t you tell me skater boys are so fucking cute?” Baekhyun demands, turning to glare at Jongdae from under Chanyeol’s arm. “I would’ve visited sooner!” 

“Who? Yixing?” Jongdae cackles with glee. “Oh my gosh, you’re so right.” 

“No! I call dibs.” 

“Dude, relax. I meant he’s totally your type.” 

“What’s that supposed to mean?” Baekhyun asks, attention now back to Yixing who’s performing his combination spin. When he changes positions, his shirt lifts up slightly due to the wind, revealing a hint of the most gorgeous abs that Baekhyun has ever laid eyes on. “Oh my god, I’m drooling. Skater boys…” 

“He was a skater boy,” Jongdae begins teasingly, 

“So she said ‘cya later’, boy.” Chanyeol finishes. 

“More like ‘hey there’, boy,” Baekhyun murmurs. Just then, the doors to the Zamboni rumble open, signaling the end of the session. “What,” Baekhyun gapes at the ice resurfacer as they clamor down from the bleachers to meet Jongin, “Is that?” 

“Zamboni,” Jongin says breathlessly. “Cuts the ice and lays a new sheet of water so that the ice becomes smooth again. Hey, guys.” 

“Sup, Nini.” Chanyeol gives a sweaty Jongin a one-armed hug. “Good to see you finally.” 

“Yeah, sorry, I was really busy with Nationals. Glad that it’s over.” Jongin beckons his friends into the locker room when they hesitate. “Come in. Ki-gang, this is Baekhyun,” Jongin points to Baekhyun as he introduces him to his skating team, “and Baek, this is Ki-gang _ ,  _ Jinki-hyung, Minho-hyung, Taemin-sunbae, Yixing-hyung, and Sehunnie.”

“Why do you not visit the rink like Jongdae and Chanyeol sometimes?” Yixing pipes up, looking at Baekhyun with the same interest that he showed on the ice. Baekhyun’s suddenly  _ very  _ aware of the dark circles under his eyes, thrown into relief by the harsh locker room lights, as well as his unimpressive ensemble of sweatpants and a sweatshirt. He mentally curses himself for not putting on at least a layer of BB cream like he usually does when he’s streaming his games. 

“I…” 

“He’s a gamer boy and doesn’t go out of the house,” Jongdae offers, and Baekhyun decides to roll with that. 

“What do you play?” Yixing asks curiously, seemingly unbothered by Baekhyun’s lack of effort in his appearance. 

“I stream League and play for SKT T1,” Baekhyun’s hands go up to pat his fluffy hair. At least it’s still nicely groomed from his stream earlier that day. 

“SKT T1?!? As in, SK Telecom T1?” Yixing’s mouth drops open. “Wait, what is your Summoner Name?”

“Kyoong…?” Baekhyun tilts his head to the side and lets his hood drop. As soon as the light hits his face, Yixing grabs Jongin’s arm for moral support while the other hand goes up to his mouth in shock. The legendary mid player who has been with one of South Korea’s best League of Legends teams for 6 years is standing right in front of him in the flesh.

“Oh my gosh, I am so sorry, I did not recognize you,” Yixing’s already broken Korean turns even more unintelligible as he trips over words. Baekhyun thinks it’s the cutest thing he’s ever heard. “I play for fun, I watch you all the time. I cannot believe I did not know the second you walked in…” 

“You know me?” Baekhyun’s voice is a purr, but his heart sinks just slightly. 

“Yes. I am a huge fan of you.” 

Baekhyun’s smitten, and he really shouldn’t be. “Who do you main?” 

“Uh… Ekko Jungle? I am not good,” Yixing dabs at the sweat on his temple with the sleeve of his shirt. 

“Maybe I could teach you,” Baekhyun offers, then promptly claps a hand to his mouth as he realizes how forward that was. Jongdae pulls back to stare at him unabashedly, but Yixing doesn’t seem to mind. He breaks out in an awed smile. 

“Really?” He breathes, and Baekhyun nods carefully, avoiding his eyes. 

“Why did you not tell me you were friends with Ky--Byun Baekhyun?” Yixing demands, shaking Jongin slightly, and Jongin rolls his eyes. 

“I never see him, I kinda just forget about him.” 

“Oh,  _ you _ think you’re  _ SOOOOOO  _ funny,” Baekhyun cocks an eyebrow as Chanyeol drops to his knees on the wet locker room floor in laughter. “I bet you lie awake in bed  _ EVERY _ night and laugh at your own jokes that you make at my expense.” 

“I do not,” Jongin’s wheezing along with the rest of the locker room at Baekhyun’s snarky comments. 

“I watched you guys at Nationals!” Jongdae crows after the laughter dies down, and three pairs of eyes immediately turn to him. 

“Who was your favorite?” Minho asks. Beside him, Jinki lands a light slap on his shoulder. 

“Not everything is a competition, Ming.” 

“Nationals  _ was  _ a competition,” Taemin points out quietly. 

“You were my favorite,” Jongdae tells Minho. “I’m not lying!” He protests when Jinki snorts in disbelief. 

“He’s not lying, he really liked Minho-hyung the best,” Jongin vouches, and at this, Minho holds up a ‘fighting’ gesture towards Jongdae. 

“Smart choice.” 

“I gotchu.” Jongdae fist bumps him. “Nini, hurry  _ up. _ ” 

“Huh?” Jongin looks up from his conversation with Taemin. “Just one minute. When’s the next session?” 

“There’s another three hour session right after this ice cut,” Taemin traces a finger down the weekly ice schedule on his phone, pointing it out to Jongin. “I think I’ll do another hour just to work on cleaning up Quad Loop.” 

“Sunbae’s been working so hard,” Jongin murmurs, but falters as Taemin turns to look at him evenly. 

“Wouldn’t you, if you were in my position?” Jongin considers this for a moment. 

“Probably,” Jongin admits. “But sunbae has always worked… harder… than all of us.” Jongin fights ridiculously hard to keep a blush from rising as he says this, and he returns to wiping his blades with more fervor than necessary. He can feel Taemin’s eyes still on him, but they turn away as the locker door suddenly opens and Jonghyun bursts in. 

“Woah. It’s crowded today,” Jonghyun remarks, peering behind the door to where Chanyeol, Jongdae, and Baekhyun are clustered together. “Hi, Nini’s friends!” 

“Hi,” they chorus. Jonghyun turns to Taemin, who looks confused. 

“What are you doing here?” 

“I got off work and came to see you, duh.” Jonghyun ruffles Taemin’s hair and sits down next to him. “How you doing? How was practice?” 

“Was good.” An easy summary. “You don’t have to visit me everyday,” Taemin complains. “I feel like I have a second mom.” 

“To be fair, your mother told me to look after you since you moved all the way here for training, so that means you’re practically my child,” Jonghyun retorts at this. “You look so skinny, are you eating?” 

“Yes.” 

“No,” Jinki tattles on Taemin. “He skipped lunch today.” 

“And you  _ let  _ him?” Jonghyun turns on Jinki now. 

“Oi, tell him off, not me,” Jinki rolls his eyes and shoves Jonghyun off of him. 

“You’re burning that many calories a day, and still skipping meals? You can’t do that, Taeminnie,” Jonghyun says to an unresponsive Taemin who begins lacing his skates up again after letting his feet rest for a few minutes. “What are you doing?” 

“I’m getting on for another hour or so.” 

“Just an hour? Then I’ll stay to watch so I can drag you out to dinner afterwards,” Jonghyun says resolutely, and at this, Taemin shakes his head. 

“I can’t eat out while I’m still competing.” 

“Yes, you can. We can even get salad bowls if that makes you feel better. But you’re disintegrating before my eyes.” Taemin opens his mouth to protest, but Jonghyun slaps his hand over Taemin’s mouth, glaring at him in a very motherly way. “No arguments with me.” 

“Is anyone gonna do another session?” Taemin asks, and Sehun shakes his head. 

“It’ll probably just be you, sunbae. We’re all done for the season.” 

“That’s fine,” Taemin murmurs. Jongin looks torn beside him. 

“If I did another hour,” he begins, but Chanyeol glares at him. 

“I will  _ not  _ wait for you. We got dinners to eat. Let’s fucking go.” 

“But,” Jongin protests, and Chanyeol almost gives in to Jongin’s wide puppy eyes, especially when Taemin glances up at Jongin with curiosity. Jongin turns to Taemin, still showcasing the puppy eyes, and Taemin blinks a few times before turning away. 

“It’s your choice. You are welcome to skate with me, or go with your friends.” A sudden clap makes both of them look up to see Sehun collapsing into laughter at Jongin’s sudden dilemma. “What’s funny?” Taemin asks. 

“What’ll it be, Jong?” Sehun raises a knowing eyebrow. 

“I’ll go with you guys,” Jongin waves his hand towards Chanyeol and flicks off a disappointed Sehun. 

“Where are you going?” Yixing asks at large, but his eyes are on Baekhyun. 

“Dinner,” Baekhyun replies, shifting his weight onto his other foot. In a bout of bravery, he asks the question that’s been on the tip of tongue. “Do you want to come?” 

“Yes! Come!” Jongin urges, eager at the prospect of getting to hang out with both groups of his friends. “Anybody else?” 

“I am not a bother?” Yixing looks to Jongin. 

“No, no! Feel free to tag along. Sehunnie?” 

“Yeah, fuck it, I’ll come for a bit. I’ll text Junmyeon to meet us at the mall.” Jongin whoops happily. 

“We’ll pass,” Minho speaks for both himself and Jinki. “You all have fun, though.” 

“We  _ will _ ,” Jongin says excitedly, gathering his street clothes to change into. “It’s been ages since I’ve gone out.” 

\--

“So,” Baekhyun begins as he walks next to Yixing a few steps behind Jongin, who’s chattering away with Jongdae and Chanyeol, “Where are you from? China?” 

“Yes,” Yixing nods affirmation. “I am here to train with Coach Kibum.” 

“Ahh, I see. How long have you been here?” 

“This my third year overseas. I go home for Nationals and celebrate holiday every year.” 

“Your Korean is really good,” Baekhyun praises just to see Yixing’s cute dimple deepen at the compliment. The athlete looks even cuter in streetwear, despite it just being a simple pullover paired with straight jeans and Vans. 

“Thank you!” 

“And you’re an amazing skater,” Baekhyun adds. “Couldn’t take my eyes off of you. I can’t even balance on the ice, I’d fall right over onto my ass.” Yixing laughs. 

“But you can get away with Orianna on low health ALL the time, even with just Flash available and them ganging up on you three to one no problem,” and Baekhyun is  _ floored.  _ “We all talented at our own things,” Yixing offers shyly. 

“Oh…” Baekhyun clasps his hands to his heart. “I’m so flattered hearing that from you.” But a small part of him still squirms with uncertainty, even as Yixing shows his dimple again. 

“Ahem!” Jongin pulls Yixing’s sleeve into the restaurant and Yixing reluctantly rips his gaze away from Baekhyun to look where he’s going. “Stop flirting, Xing-hyung.” 

“Ah, I was not flirting,” Yixing protests weakly, and Jongin raises his eyebrows, unconvinced, while Baekhyun only smirks. 

“Weren’t you?” Baekhyun leans closer to Yixing and whispers hotly in his ear. “I was.” He strolls into the restaurant, leaving behind a thoroughly flustered Yixing and an unimpressed Jongin. 

“Can I sit…” Yixing hovers over the seat next to Baekhyun’s nervously, and Baekhyun gestures widely. 

“Feel free.” The six of them make quite the commotion around the large table; Sehun swats at Jongin with a napkin as Jongin attempts to leave a bruise on Sehun’s bicep, Jongdae’s chuckling with Chanyeol and wiggling his eyebrows over at Baekhyun, who winks right back.

“When’s Junmyeon coming?” Jongin asks as Sehun holds him at arms length, and at this, Sehun releases Jongin to check his phone. 

“Just a few minutes. Don’t change the subject. Do you or do you not like Lee Taemin?” 

“Stop,” Jongin protests, reaching out with a hand to hit Sehun, and their bickering begins all over again. 

“It’s so  _ obvious, _ ” Sehun chortles, holding Jongin’s wrist firmly to prevent further attacks. He raises his voice in an imitation of Jongin. “Sunbae works harder than all of us. Sunbae, nice Loop today! Sunbae, should I stay on for another session?” 

“I knew something was funky,” Jongdae remarks, turning his attention to Jongin who is now blushing furiously. “So you really do like Taemin.” 

“You like Taemin?” Yixing’s head jerks up in curiosity from across the table. 

“I don’t!” Jongin shrieks, and he would’ve successfully managed to smack Sehun’s face in the next few minutes had Junmyeon not shown up to gently untangle Jongin from his boyfriend and sit in between the two of them, dropping a kiss in Sehun’s hair as a greeting. 

“Baek, this is Junmyeon. Sehun’s boyfriend.” Jongin grumbles, introducing them to each other, and Baekhyun leans across the table to shake Junmyeon’s hand. 

“So, what’s it like dating a skater?” Baekhyun inquires innocently, but shoots a mischievous glance at a sniggering Jongdae. “Do you know all the odds and ends?” 

“I’d like to think I know a decent amount,” Junmyeon interlaces his hand with Sehun’s under the table. “At least I make an effort to learn.” 

“Aww, that’s so sweet,” Jongin says sarcastically. “Quick, what’s the most difficult jump?” 

“Axel,” Junmyeon replies, and Sehun kisses him as a reward. 

“Why is it the most difficult?” Jongin asks, and Junmyeon hesitates. Baekhyun looks to Yixing for an explanation. 

“All skating jump start out gliding backwards and also land backwards,” Yixing murmurs. “So for example, I did Triple Lutz in front of you. I start backwards, jump and rotate three revolution, then land backwards on one foot.” 

“Yep,” Baekhyun’s never been so invested in ~~Yixing’s dimple~~ figure skating before. 

“But Axel take off forward. So in order to land backward, you need additional half rotation before you can land backwards. Um, so… I give example. I do Triple Axel. If I start out forward, I need one--two--three--you see, I am forwards now, so I need additional-- _ half-- _ in order to be able to land backward. That is why it is most difficult.” 

“Ohhh! I get it now,” Baekhyun’s genuinely delighted. “That’s actually so freakin’ cool.” 

“It is interesting,” Yixing agrees. 

“So what’s the second hardest jump?” 

“Lutz,” Jongin answers for Yixing, but Baekhyun glares at him from across the table. 

“Did I fuckin ASK?” Baekhyun squawks obnoxiously. 

“Technically you did…” Jongin tilts his head to the side in polite confusion. 

“But did I ask YOU? No! Yixing, why is it the second hardest jump?” Baekhyun bats his eyelashes up at Yixing who’s trying very hard to quell a blush and hide his laughter at Jongin’s indignant expression. 

“B-because it take off on outside edge of the blade. In skating we have outside edge,” here, Yixing places both his hands on the table to imitate skate blades, palms facing each other, then tilts his hands slightly away from each other, making them look a little like a V. “This is outside.” 

“And this is inside?” Baekhyun mirrors Yixing’s example and tilts his hands towards each other in an A shape. 

“Yes! Most jump take off on inside edge. That make it easier to jump because we can just pull into position in the air nice and easy.” 

“Nice and easy,” Baekhyun agrees. 

“But outside make it harder because we have to hold that edge all the way. We can’t switch to inside edge. It is very technique-focused jump and shows good control of edges if you can land one. It is also difficult because our weight is on non-dominant leg when we take off, and we have to transfer weight onto dominant leg when we land. Axel is also same way, actually. Forward takeoff on outside edge on non-dominant leg. That what make it so difficult.” 

“Oh, wow.” Baekhyun had never thought that there would be so much detail with jumps, and he shares this with Yixing. “I thought that all jumps were the same whenever I watched skating on TV.” 

“No, not same. Very different, all of them.” Yixing looks uncertain. “Did I explain okay? Does that make sense? I know my Korean not fluent.” 

“No, no! It was perfect,” Baekhyun purrs just as the waitress comes up to take their orders. 

\--

“You said you watch my streams,” Baekhyun’s voice is a little slurred from the wine and heavy meal, but his head is still decently clear as he sits down on a bench outside the restaurant next to Yixing, tucking his hands deep in his pockets. The rest of their group has already left for the night, Jongdae casting a knowing look at Baekhyun as he had ducked into the car with Jongin and Chanyeol to return to their shared apartment. Sehun, of course, had left with Junmyeon. Yixing nods in response to Baekhyun’s question, a plastic takeout bag in one hand.

“When I have time, I always watch. League help me relax.” 

“I could help you relax in a lot of other ways as well, sweetheart,” The alcohol makes him brave and Baekhyun’s always been a little too brazen for his own good. Yixing’s blush makes it worth it. 

“You are very forward, Baekhyun-ssi.” 

“I just,” Baekhyun shrugs, “I like you, and I’m an honest person.” 

Yixing’s voice is soft when he replies, “I like you, too. I want to get to know you better.” Baekhyun knows he should be happy that his feelings are reciprocated, but the small voice in the back of his head that he’s been pushing away the whole night suddenly roars its disapproval.

“Don’t you know me plenty already?” Is his bitter question. Baekhyun braces himself for the inevitable disappointment. 

“Of course not,” Yixing answers evenly. “I know Kyoong, but I only met Byun Baekhyun today. I do not know him. I like  _ him _ .” Baekhyun looks up in shock at the taller male. 

“Is that really what you think?” The hope in Baekhyun’s voice is palpable. 

“I know what you mean, Baekhyun-ssi. It is same for me. Everyone like me for this face, or for my skating. That is my life and my image, yes. But I am also this.” Yixing gestures to his street outfit. “I know it sound like I like you because you are Kyoong. But I know you are more than that. I am also more than  _ Changsha’s Little Pride, China Sheep,  _ whatever you want to call me.” 

“Skater boys…” Baekhyun shakes his head a little to make sure he isn’t dreaming. “Wow.” 

“Wow,” Yixing agrees, and suddenly Baekhyun’s aware of just how  _ close  _ Yixing is to him. Yixing’s hand reaches up to gently cup Baekhyun’s face, and suddenly Baekhyun panics. 

“Wait,” Baekhyun pulls back and Yixing does, too, looking incredibly repentant and embarrassed. 

“I am so sorry--” 

“I’ve never kissed anyone,” Baekhyun blurts, and Yixing’s expression shifts from devastated to confusion to blank to barely concealed amusement in a flash. 

“You flirt so much on streams and with me you talk like crazy all through dinner, but you have never kissed anyone before?” Yixing asks, doing his best to conceal his laughter. Baekhyun buries himself in his oversized hoodie to hide his red face that has nothing at all to do with Asian flush. “Can we get f in chat?” 

“Everybody wants to kiss Kyoong,” Baekhyun mutters. “So Kyoong doesn’t get to kiss anybody.” 

“Hey.” Baekhyun lifts his head up to see Yixing looking at him. “Do you want to kiss me?” 

“Oh my gosh, so badly.” Baekhyun admits. Yixing’s lips look plump and soft compared to Baekhyun’s slightly chapped ones. Baekhyun’s breath probably smells like hibachi and wine as well. He’s really setting himself up to impress tonight.

“Then come here.” Yixing cups his hand against Baekhyun’s thin cheek again and scoots closer to him on the bench. “Close your eyes.” Butterflies erupt in the pit of his stomach as Baekhyun obeys nervously. 

“What now?” He hopes his voice isn’t shaking. 

“Now,” Yixing’s voice is barely above a whisper and his breath is hot on Baekhyun’s jaw, “Kiss me.” Baekhyun’s head explodes when Yixing’s lips press against his; pillowy-soft and addictingly sweet just like he had imagined, only ten times better. He follows blindly, instinctively opening his mouth a little when Yixing does, and sloppily catches onto the slow, unhurried pace that Yixing sets. Yixing kisses with his entire body; the hand on Baekhyun’s cheek snaking behind to cup the nape of his neck and pull Baekhyun infinitely closer, leaning into Baekhyun so that the younger can feel Yixing’s body heat radiating off of him, and the way he injects care and patience into every one of his movements so that it’s not just a mindless makeout session. When Yixing pulls away, Baekhyun’s entire world is spinning, he’s sporting a  _ massive  _ erection in his sweatpants, and his lips tingle with Yixing’s taste. 

“Your first kiss. Was it good?” Yixing questions almost worriedly. Baekhyun brings a hand up to his lips, then holds it in front of his face in wonder, staring at his appendage as if he expects the pads of his fingers to be drenched in glitter. 

“Skater boys…” Baekhyun’s voice is hoarse. “Wow.” 

\--

Taemin glances up in surprise as Jonghyun barges into the locker room. 

“You’re still here?” 

“YOU SAID  _ ONE  _ MORE HOUR,” Jonghyun accuses, “ _ How  _ many hours has it been?” 

“I don’t know. Three?” There’s a trace of a smirk on Taemin’s face as he goes back to wiping his blades down. 

“Lee  _ Taemin,  _ the things I do for you, yahhhh, this kid,” Jonghyun’s hands run up to his hair and curl into fists menacingly as he bares his teeth at Taemin, “You’re  _ so  _ spoiled, AGGGHHHH!” Jonghyun grits his teeth and punches the air, much to Taemin’s amusement. 

“Did you watch me for all three hours?” He inquires, and if anything, this sends Jonghyun into an even bigger hissy fit. 

“I sat in front of that window and watched you land  _ every  _ single jump and you didn’t WAVE, you didn’t SMILE, you didn’t STOP, you--” 

“Oh. Wow.” 

“WOW?” Jonghyun’s laugh is borderline maniacal. “Do you have  _ anything  _ else you wanna say for yourself before I lose my mind?” Taemin carefully places his boots neatly into his suitcase and zips it up methodically before shrugging off his Team South Korea jacket in exchange for a comfortable winter parka instead. 

“Thank you, hyungie. You’re the best,” Taemin embraces his number one supporter with one arm and gently pushes the locker door open. “Let’s go get dinner now.” 

“Just look at the time,” Jonghyun complains loudly to nobody in particular as they walk out of the rink together. “It’s ten o’clock PM.” 

“Perhaps I shouldn’t eat since it’s already so late…” 

“LEE TAEMIN!” 

  
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Not to be dramatic or anything, but you guys are literally the best and I love you so much srsly ;-; i'm cryin in the club  
> Originally BaekXing were gonna get drunk and Baekhyun would've said something along the lines of "Your dick riding skills deserve a +3 GOE"  
> That's probably why it didn't work out that way  
> :3


	5. Chapter 5

As soon as Jongin walks into the rink that morning, Minho waves frantically at him to turn around. 

“Go home, go home,” Minho insists, forcibly grabbing Jongin by the shoulders and steering him back out of the rink. “Leave while you still can.” 

“Wait why? What’s happening?” Jongin’s utterly confused. “What?” 

“Minseok’s scowling.” Jongin gasps dramatically and turns around to meet Minho’s anguished gaze. 

“ _Minseok’s in a bad mood?”_ Minho nods affirmation as he takes off on the usual jog around the rink. “NO! HYUNG,” Jongin falls to his knees theatrically as Minho leaves him. “Don’t leave me…” At least Minho’s overdramatic welcome puts Jongin in a good mood as he wheels his suitcase back into the rink to get ready for the session. 

“What is going on?” Yixing makes his way into the locker room just as Jongin’s getting ready to jog. “Minho said I need to leave.” 

“Cerberus is on the loose,” Jongin says ominously, and Yixing groans as he sets his stuff down. Jinki came up with the nickname and it had stuck; while it takes very little to rile up Kibum and Kyungsoo at any given practice, if their cheerful young choreographer is also annoyed, then practice is bound to be miserable at best. 

“It is pre-Worlds,” Yixing sighs, setting off on the jog with Jongin. 

“Yeah,” Jongin agrees grimly, not looking forward to a snappy and tense practice. “I suppose Taemin is stressed as well,” he adds gloomily without thinking. At this, Yixing glances at Jongin. 

“Do you really like him? Sehun says you do.” 

“I really respect Taemin-sunbae,” Jongin answers helplessly, feeling his face heat up. “I just feel bad for him with all the pressure on his shoulders.” Yixing doesn’t look too convinced at this explanation, and honestly, Jongin can’t blame him. He can’t even convince himself, especially when he lingers behind in the locker room after every practice to exchange a few words with Taemin, who gets off the ice only when the Zamboni driver honks angrily at him to leave. 

“So we’re in for a rough one,” Minho announces to the general locker room as Jongin ties his skates, “Every man for himself.” 

“Chill, Ming, it ain’t that deep.” Jinki rolls his eyes. 

“It will not be that bad, will it?” Yixing questions, and at this, Sehun laughs. 

“Sureee, hyung. Keep telling yourself that.” Sehun’s hand has just touched the handle of the locker room door when it swings open on its own. Sehun just barely dodges it, yelping in surprise. 

“Whoops, sorry,” Jongdae’s singsong voice rings through the locker room as he traipses in pulling--Jongin’s mouth drops open in shock--Baekhyun with him. 

“You could not,” Minho states, “Have chosen a worse day to drop in.” 

“Why are you here?” Jongin blurts, pointing to Baekhyun, who’s sneaking glances at Yixing while the latter is doing the exact same thing. 

“To visit, duh.” Jongdae rolls his eyes. “We’re your fanboys.” 

“Well, have fun watching us get yelled at by Kibum today,” Jongin collects his things and walks out the door behind Sehun, Minho, and Jinki. To his surprise, Jongdae scurries after him. 

“What’s up with Baekhyun?” Jongin hisses. Jongdae only beams and attempts to wrap his arm around Jongin, who absolutely _towers_ over him in skates. 

“You didn’t notice at dinner last week?” Jongdae wiggles his eyebrows. 

“They were flirting, yeah…” Jongin turns to look at Jongdae. “Are you serious?” Jongdae nods and clasps his hands together. 

“Ah, the beauty of peeping your head out of the house once in a while.” 

“He likes Yixing-hyung _that_ much?” 

“I have no idea, dude. I don’t know what magic that man worked on Baekhyun to get him to hit me with a ‘take me to the rink’ this morning. I’m just as confused as you are.” Jongdae claps a hand over his mouth and drags Jongin down to his height by the jacket. “Do you think they hooked up when we all left?” 

“Jongdae, please be reasonable. Baekhyun is about as sexually adroit as a cotton ball.” 

“You’re right,” Jongdae wilts just slightly. “Well, what do you think is gonna happen between them?” 

“I have no idea, and frankly, I don’t really care right now,” Jongin walks through the double doors into the rink. “I’m just gonna pray for my life.” 

\--

“Hey.” Yixing stands up, shaking out his legs a little. Baekhyun cries internally at how tall Yixing is when he’s in skates. “Nice to see you again.” 

“Yeah,” Baekhyun’s a little tongue-tied. “I just thought I would, you know. Drop by?” 

Yixing raises an eyebrow. “You must be busy with LCK? It’s the seventh week of the group stage and your match against Griffin are coming up. Are you nervous?” 

Baekhyun shrugs nonchalantly. “We were going to play against them sooner or later. This will be the hardest match so far for sure, but I’m not afraid of them.” Now if they’re talking League, Baekhyun’s got his tongue under control. He smirks at Yixing. “Kyoong’s comin’ at ya.” 

“It has been a while since you play against Griffin,” Yixing notes. Baekhyun nods in surprise. 

“You are following the Champions Korea series?”

“Of course!” Yixing nods excitedly. “Congratulations on your win against KZ yesterday. Though let us be honest, they never had slightest chance in either of those two games. I was so excited to see you on LeBlanc again after so long. And how you took their Nexus while they were at Baron was just hilarious!”

“You even watched our matches?” Baekhyun’s going to pass out. “Sweetheart, I know you can’t get enough of me.” 

Yixing flushes pink. “But you must be tired, right?” 

Baekhyun groans at this. “Dude, tell me about it. My schedule is completely packed, I literally haven’t slept for days. I kinda feel like a shell.” 

“Today you still come to rink though,” Yixing points out, and Baekhyun realizes he’s walked right into a trap when he meets Yixing’s small smile. 

“I… Uh…” 

Yixing gathers his jacket and water bottle. “I have to be on the ice. Coaches are angry today, being late is… not good idea.” 

“I never got your number,” Baekhyun blurts to the black rubber mats on the locker room floor. “Like, last week. You know.” 

“Ahhh,” Yixing holds a hand out for Baekhyun’s phone. “That is easy to fix.” Baekhyun makes a small noise in the back of his throat as Yixing clamps his teeth around the tip of a glove and pulls it off, leaving it to dangle while he taps his number into Baekhyun’s contacts. Yixing hands the phone back before slipping his glove back on. 

“Is there anything else I can help you with, Baekhyun-ssi?” It’s a question of consent, not to be taken at face value. Baekhyun swallows hard. 

“Not… I mean...” Baekhyun begins lamely, freezing as two fingers dip under his chin and force him to meet Yixing’s eyes. 

“What happen to flirting?” Yixing teases, and Baekhyun wrinkles his nose pathetically. “Don’t worry,” Yixing adds as Baekhyun opens his mouth for a snarky retort. “I know. Skater boys, right?” Baekhyun barely registers the lips against his before Yixing pulls away. “Text me soon, Baekhyun-ssi. I must go now.” Yixing wrenches the squeaky locker room door open and walks away, skate guards clicking with every step, leaving a stuttering Baekhyun with a newfound affection for smelly locker rooms. 

\--

Out on the ice, there’s absolute chaos. Jongin’s ears ring with the combined shouts of Kibum and Kyungsoo. ‘Romeo and Juliet’ hasn’t been turned off for the past hour. At this point, Jongin’s pretty sure that if he joined forces with Minho and Jinki, they could sing a pretty decent acapella version of Taemin’s music by now. The skater in question is off choreographing in a corner of the rink with Minseok, who leans against the boards, appraising Taemin’s suggestion. 

“Why are you guys such a mess today?” Jongdae asks when Jongin gets off the ice under the pretense of refilling his water bottle, but more so to take a break from the incessant yelling that he can still hear filtering into the lobby. 

“We’re like two weeks out from Worlds. So everyone’s super stressed. Not to mention that this Worlds is probably just gonna suck ass for everyone because the International Skating Union changed the rules for GOEs,” Jongin sighs irritably. The bad energy in the rink is getting to everyone. 

“What’s the rule change?” 

“Instead of a plus-minus 3 GOE, skaters can now earn up to a plus-minus 5 for their Grade Of Execution,” Jongin explains shortly. “It means the imaginary ‘maximum’ score has been increased. It also means that if you do shitty, then your score will be spectacularly horrible, but if you do amazing, then your score is gonna blow the roof.” 

“So you’re rewarded for high-risk but punished if you bite off more than you can chew?” Jongdae’s economics side jumps out immediately. 

“Yeah, that’s the gist of it.” Jongin turns back to the rink. “Minseok’s pissed cause Taemin wants to incorporate wayyy more risk than he reasonably should,” he adds behind his back. 

Since Kyungsoo’s sidetracked with Taemin for the majority of the morning, Jongin’s left to his own devices for Quad Flip. He walks through each individual step of the jump carefully and does a few Triples just to settle into the feeling of the jump before stuffing a one-inch thick kidney-bean shaped foam pad under the waistband of his pants to protect his left hip from any major falls. There’s no need to wear one on the right side because Jongin usually falls on his left hip, since he rotates that way. Jongin props his phone up against the boards and hits ‘record’. It comes as no surprise to Jongin when he picks up speed for the Flip and launches himself in the air only to land in a heap on the ground. Jumps become consistent and clean because of muscle memory, and since Jongin’s Quad Flip is still relatively new, he’ll be landing on his ass for the next few months as he slowly works out the technique and feel of the jump. After each jump, Jongin gets up resignedly, flicks the snow off of his pants, and makes his way back to his recording, where he slows the video down and analyzes his mistakes before setting up to try again. Working things out on his own, figuring out what feels uncomfortable and what gives him more rotation--Jongin slowly slips into a sphere of focus and the commotion around him fades away while he scrutinizes his weak points. The rest of practice flows by rather quickly, and when Jongin finally makes his way back to the boards to gather his things and get off the ice, his fingers are stiff and numb with cold. The left side of his pants is completely soaked through as well, and Jongin winces uncomfortably as he digs the foam pad out of his pants and the wet fabric sticks against his leg. There’s no worse feeling than coming down from the high of a focused training session to realize just how cold and numb and bruised he really is. 

“I can’t feel my hands,” Jongin grouses, struggling to take his gloves off. He ends up yanking them off with his teeth and dropping them into his pocket clumsily. “Ugh, I’m not gonna be able to untie my skates.” He opens and closes a fist, trying to get some feeling back into his fingers when warm hands suddenly wrap around his numb one. Jongin looks up and promptly turns bright red. 

“It’s okay s-sunbae, you don’t--don’t have to…” Jongin makes to pull his hand back, but Taemin ignores his stuttering protests and clasps his hand tightly to warm it up. 

“What were you working on?” He asks quietly. 

“Flip…” 

“Ah. Maybe if you didn’t reach down to the ice every time, your hands wouldn’t be so cold.” Taemin’s entire body radiates heat, and sweat drips off his temple. If Jongin wasn’t a skater himself, he’d be questioning the thermodynamics of sweating inside a freezing ice rink. Once Taemin deems Jongin’s left hand is sufficiently warm enough to regain a little bit of dexterity, he drops it and reaches for the other. 

“It’s okay,” Jongin insists, but Taemin only sighs a little as he reaches for Jongin’s hand nonetheless. Yixing catches Jongin’s eye and raises his eyebrows pointedly while Jongin is blushing crimson. 

“Relax,” Taemin murmurs. “It’s not a big deal, practice is over anyways.” He’s right, of course. Jongin has warmed up Sehun’s hands for him more times than he can count. But Jinki is his usual go-to for a human heater; Jongin can complain all he wants about his jumps and Jinki will patiently listen and offer feedback. With Taemin, Jongin has no idea what to focus on other than how Taemin’s hands feel wrapped around his. Both of them just barely cover Jongin’s, and in the midst of his many chaotic thoughts, he can only process one of them: _Taemin-sunbae has_ **_tiny_ ** _hands. He’s SMOL._ Jongin’s heart doesn’t know how to cope with this piece of information, choosing to beat faster in order to compromise for his short-circuited brain. An accidental brush of fingers tells Jongin that Taemin’s (SMOL) hands are soft and supple, except for the telltale calluses that are a dead giveaway of Taemin’s hard work and the hours he’s spent at the rink. Jongin has them, too; he’s spent years building them and he’s proud of them--hardened patches of skin on the sides of his pinkies from lacing up his skates, and one on the second joint of his middle finger where the unrelenting steel blade digs into his fingers during catch-foot spins. 

“Here, hold my stuff,” Taemin prompts, and Jongin cradles an armful of water bottles, skate guards, and piles of shed jackets as they glide off the ice together awkwardly, Taemin’s hands still wrapped around Jongin’s right hand. 

“Th-thank you,” Jongin stammers when Taemin lets go of his hand all too soon to slip his skate guards on. 

“Of course.” The elder walks off ahead of him. 

“You’re still here?” Jongin asks in surprise, hoping he isn’t blushing still as Baekhyun and Jongdae get up from the bleachers to greet the skaters. 

“No, we left for a little bit in between. Baek had to go back for training, but we came back and watched the last twenty minutes,” Jongdae explains, following them into the locker room. Yixing purposely slows down to walk next to Baekhyun. 

“So that went well,” Taemin intones soullessly after traipsing into the locker room. Jongin glances up at him. 

“Rough day, Taem?” Jinki asks sympathetically, and Taemin nods, brushing his bangs back from his forehead. 

“Minseok and I disagree with choreo,” Taemin purses his lips in frustration as he begins his rant. “He thinks--” The locker room door opens and Jonghyun walks into the dejected atmosphere.

“Cerberus?” He guesses, and Taemin gratefully accepts a comforting hug. 

“Yeah, anyways. Minseok says that the entry into my Quad-Triple should be left alone because it’s my hardest combination anyways, and it’s in the second half of my program,” Taemin sighs. “But I said I can do a difficult entry into it to boost my chances at getting a plus GOE.” 

To everyone’s surprise, Baekhyun interrupts. “Wait, sorry. How do you even get a plus or minus GOE? What’s the criterion?” he asks. Jonghyun answers enthusiastically just as Yixing opens his mouth to explain. Taemin drops down onto the bench tiredly. 

“Skaters call them ‘bullets’. They’re a set of features that a jump can have either going into it, during the jump, and exiting out of it that will get you GOE’s. So for example--Taeminnie, you usually get a plus 4 GOE on your combo, right?” Taemin nods. “Right, so what are your bullets for that?” 

“I’m pretty sure I get awarded ‘good height and ice coverage’, ‘jump matches the music nuances’, ‘good rotation position’, and ‘speed coming out of landing.’” 

“Right, so those are examples of bullets. There are different kinds of bullets for different elements--footwork, jumps, and spins. For a plus one GOE, you only have to get one bullet. For two, you need two bullets, et cetera. For a plus five GOE, you would need five or more bullets--and you can get a maximum of six bullets for any one element.” 

“How do you know all this?” Jinki gapes at Jonghyun incredulously. “You know some skaters don’t even pay attention to this.” 

“A little bit of self-research and a little bit of Taeminnie.” Jonghyun shrugs. 

“But what is considered ‘good’?” Baekhyun inquires, eyes flickering back to Yixing. Jonghyun completely misses the cue and launches forward with his explanation as Jongdae hides a smile behind the back of his hand. 

“Good question. That’s where the subjective part of skating comes into play. There are five technical panel callers and anywhere between 3-9 judges. Each technical panel judge awards the skater based on their own idea of ‘good’. The GOE that the element is actually given is based on the majority choice from the judges.” 

“But what if each judge gives a different GOE?” Jongdae pipes up. Jinki takes this question, shaking his head slightly.

“That’s improbable. There’s no way that one judge would think that an element is plus 1 while another thinks it’s plus 5. I would definitely be questioning the credentials of the judges at that point. Usually the general consensus is about the same across the entire panel.” 

“Wait, so are there bullets for negative GOE as well?” Baekhyun concludes, and six heads nod in agreement. 

“Yep. And a fall automatically puts your GOE to minus five.” Jonghyun blows out a big breath after his long-winded explanation.

“Well, there are caveats to that, but they’re rare so I’m not gonna bother explaining.” Jinki looks impressed nonetheless.

“My feels when people explain how skating judging works and we go through all this effort to explain the tech panel, and then we have to explain that artistry is judged in an entirely different way,” Minho intones, and Jinki laughs at this. 

“Yup, artistry doesn’t use GOEs, but maybe we’ll save that for later.” 

“Later,” Baekhyun agrees, looking slightly disappointed and very confused. “That was honestly… a lot.” 

“Does it kinda make sense?” Jonghyun asks worriedly, and Baekhyun nods. 

“Yeah. I’m impressed, dude,” Baekhyun throws Jonghyun a thumbs up. “That’s a lotta shit to remember.” Jonghyun only shrugs and pats Taemin on the head. “You okay, Taeminnie?” 

“I’ve been better.” Taemin wrenches the skate off of his foot. “I gotta come back in the afternoon.” 

“Do you need to or want to?” Sehun asks. 

“Need. Minseok wants me back.” 

“Damn, that’s rough.” Sehun’s mouth twists to the side sympathetically. “I’m glad it’s off-season for us so we don’t have to do double sessions anymore.” 

“Yep. Lucky,” Taemin runs a hand through his hair as Jonghyun rubs his back in comforting circles. 

“Taem, don’t pay attention to what the general public says,” Jinki begins anxiously, but Taemin shakes his head. 

“I don’t pay attention, hyung, you know this.” But despite not having SNS, Jongin and the rest of the locker room know that Taemin is well-aware of the huge amount of expectations and the insurmountable amount of pressure on his shoulders right now. He’s not only carrying South Korea’s plans for next season, but his own career is also at stake. 

“Taeminnie…” Jonghyun begins, but Taemin waves the concern off. 

“Thank you, hyung, but I have two more weeks. I can’t afford to take a break.” 

“I know it’s always like this during peak training week. That’s not what I was going to say. I was going to tell you to drink some water.” Jonghyun pushes a bottle of water into Taemin’s hand. Jongdae clears his throat slightly and Jongin looks up. 

“Er… Baekhyun and I will take our leave,” Jongdae begins, edging out the door. 

“Feel free to visit anytime,” Jinki waves them off. “See you soon, I hope.” 

“Good luck, Kyoong!” Yixing calls, and Baekhyun turns back to flash Yixing a grin. 

“Thank you, Yixing-ssi.” 

“What’s up with that, huh?” Minho asks Yixing when Baekhyun and Jongdae have left. “You got a thing with Baekhyun?” 

“Maybe.” Yixing stands up as well, having finished taking his skates off. “I ask him out after he is less busy, hopefully.” 

“AWWWW!” Sehun covers his mouth with his hand. “That is _SO_ cute. You like gamer boys?” 

“I like him.” Yixing’s head tilts slightly.

“You think he’s cute?” Minho teases, and Yixing ducks his head shyly when he nods. “Awww, Xingie’s found himself a little crush.” 

“Jongin’s got a little cr--” Sehun begins with an evil grin at Jongin, but stops in his tracks as the elder glares daggers back at Sehun. 

“Who?” Minho and Jinki jump on him immediately as Sehun leans back, self-satisfied. 

“I don’t,” Jongin states plainly. “Sehun’s being an absolute bitch.” 

“C’mon, I just wanna double date,” Sehun complains. “Yixing-hyung, can we go on a double date sometime?” 

“I see if Baekhyun-ssi wants to,” Yixing murmurs. “Anyway, I am leaving now. Bye!” 

“Same,” Jongin stands up as well. “I’ll see you guys tomorrow.” Minho and Jinki murmur their farewells, and Taemin nods at Jongin. “G’bye, sunbae. Good luck with practice later.”

  
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disgusting side note, NEVER ask to borrow a skater's gloves unless you're sure they've been washed, we take them off all the time with our teeth and they touch the ice which is most definitely NOT clean no matter how smooth and pretty it looks. Also we wipe runny noses with them and they get all ripped from gripping sharp blades and falling--eurhawfkawjl yeah don't hold hands  
> Also we call those protection pads "butt pads"  
> They make you look thicc  
> ;)  
> Hope you guys enjoyed the chapter!


	6. Chapter 6

Taemin barely spares a glance at Jongin when the younger quietly glides onto the ice, sets his stuff down at his usual spot on the boards, and begins warm-up, but Jongin feels Kibum’s eyes on him as he enters the rink with Minseok trailing close behind him. 

“Nini!” Kibum calls, and Jongin puts his warm-up to a halt, spraying snow as he stops and bows to both his coaches. “What are you doing here?” 

“Just putting in an extra session,” Jongin shifts slightly. “I’m not gonna do anything major, probably just focus on skating skills and spins for an hour and a half.” 

“Is anyone else planning on coming this afternoon?” Kibum asks, setting his bag down and pulling out his skates. Jongin shakes his head lightly. 

“Don’t think so.” 

“M’kay.” Kibum waves him off and Jongin returns to his twizzles--moving turns which look like a spin that travels across the ice. For the better half of an hour, Jongin quietly loses himself in footwork sequences. Using last year’s choreographic step, Jongin runs through the steps mindlessly, his muscle memory of the turns flowing back into the forefront of his mind as easily as water flows down an unclogged stream. Then he begins to change the expressions and choreographed arms within the step sequence. For last year’s Junior free skate program, Jongin had skated to a classical melody that was rather elegant and graceful. But now, Jongin forces himself to envision what the arms and execution of the step sequence would have to be like if he had skated to a piece of music that was more sinister and mysterious; such as the selections from “The Witches of Eastwick” that Yixing had skated to last year. He then performs the step sequence with much sharper movements and pointed, smirking eye contact towards where the judges table would sit along the sidelines of the rink if he were skating in a competition. He then portrays the step sequences with two more music possibilities: a fast-paced, heroic music, and a somber one slightly similar to his original music piece. Jongin has just finished the counter-turn at the very end of the sequence when Minseok calls his name. 

“How are you, Jongin?” Minseok asks with a bright smile. 

“Good, Coach.” Jongin bows slightly. 

“Taemin’s working with Kibum right now and I saw you working on artistry out of the corner of my eye, so I thought we could get a head start on music if you wanted,” Minseok offers, stepping down from the sidelines and onto the ice to get to the aux cord. “I have a few ideas for you that I’ve been planning on talking to you about.” 

“Oh?” Jongin’s immediately interested. Playing with concepts for new programs is always exciting. Every choreographer has their own ways of choosing music for the year, but Minseok’s strategy for narrowing down ideas for new programs is to collect ideas from both the skater and coach before filtering out selections. He ends up with anywhere from four to six pieces that he thinks would best fit the skater and then plays those pieces out loud in the rink for the skater to improvise to. It’s one of Jongin’s favorite parts of a new season--letting his body move naturally to whatever he feels in that piece without having to worry about the addition of elements or ice coverage. 

“Even standing still and swaying in the middle of the rink counts as improv,” Minseok reminds him now as he puts the first track on. “I just want to see what you feel.” Jongin nods and waits for the music to hit him. 

“Torn--Redux, Nathan Lanier,” Minseok murmurs to Jongin, who moves from quick, sharp turns to a graceful arm and leg extension as the music transitions from dramatic drum beats to a violin cascade. “Okay. Good, thank you…” Jongin stops. 

“I liked it,” Jongin offers. 

“Me, too. So I’ll keep that one as a ‘yes.’” Minseok moves onto the next track. “Hans Zimmer, from the movie ‘Inception’. We would do a medley--” Jongin’s mouth twists up into a smile as he hears the music. “Oh, you like it?” 

“Yes,” Jongin nods, and he actually skates over to where his step sequence begins near the end of the rink, adapting it as he skates with the nuances of the music. “I feel this one,” he offers when he finishes the sequence and returns to Minseok, who looks pleased with himself. 

“Okay. I think it could make a really great free skate for you. Not to worry--we still have a ton of time to decide, but if you like this one, I don’t mind putting it under your name. I was also going to have Sehun try it out.” 

“Sehun can also improv, I don’t mind,” Jongin shrugs. “But I do like it a lot.” 

“Okay. Just one more. And don’t worry, we can do this another time, too, if you find something that you really like as well. This is just what I’ve found so far… ‘Lilies of the Valley’, Jun Miyake.” Jongin perks up when he hears the music. It’s refreshing and original, so unlike all other pieces that usually have a slow buildup which lead to a climax. This piece stays relatively repetitive throughout the program, which means that Jongin has many more opportunities to play with choreography and coax out the very finest of nuances within the music. 

“I love this one on you,” Minseok offers. “And I think it could work very well for your second Junior year--it’s a transition into maturity, and it shows off your skating skills.” 

“I really like this one, too,” Jongin nods. “There’s a little bit of Oriental vibe to it, isn’t there?” 

“Perhaps a little, yes. It can be made very crisp and clean with just a touch of sensuality. You can ‘play’ with this piece more, per say. What do you think?” Minseok asks, unplugging his phone from the aux cord. 

“The last two pieces were my favorite.” 

“Okay. I think, from my standpoint, I’ll shelve Jun Miyake for you and keep Inception out in the open for Sehun. Does that work?” Jongin nods and bows as Minseok turns back to Taemin. 

“I refuse to use ‘Romeo and Juliet’ for one more season,” Kibum grumbles, watching Taemin run his program from the sidelines. Jongin is also perched atop the boards to watch the run-through. “I’m going to kick this kid off the ice. I’m  _ sick  _ of it.” 

“It’s getting pretty repetitive,” Minseok agrees, also watching the program. “It’s because we recycled the music for two years. He did it for Junior as well.” 

“Well, yes, because he was trying to get his Quads landed, we didn’t have time to think about a new program; it was better to just extend the music and then work more on technique. But I’m saying that we need a better concept for him. He’s skated this program half to death.” Kibum claps his hands loudly as Taemin pulls out of a spin. “Let’s  _ GO!”  _ His voice echoes around the mostly empty rink. “SPEED! POWER! PUSH!” But Taemin’s already flying down to the other side of the ice straight into his Quad-Triple combination. “MOVE, MOVE, MOVE,” Kibum’s shouts are not necessarily because Taemin is lagging behind; but more so for emphasis and to keep him on his toes in practice. Not that Taemin hears them; he’s probably blocked out all sound except for his music and all sight except for what’s right in front of him. Jongin wishes he could become that focused. Whenever Kibum yells, Jongin gets agitated (which is exactly the point, but that knowledge doesn’t make it any less stressful). At least he’s better than Sehun, who screams right back at Kibum even while he’s in the middle of his run-through. It makes the entire rink chuckle a little whenever Kibum’s chasing behind Sehun, urging him on, and Sehun retorts sharply despite being short of breath. The only reason he can do so and get away with it is because he’s pretty much the rink’s little brother, having spent his entire childhood toddling around the ice with Kibum, and quite literally grown up at the hands of one of the best coaches in the world. Despite how many times Kibum calls him a brat, Jongin knows just how much his coach loves Sehun, treating him as if he were his own child. 

“Stay on the music,” Minseok calls evenly. “You’re early! Hold that spin!” Jongin counts under his breath until Taemin rises. 

“Nini, did you count?” Kibum asks. 

“Level 4, probably no need for review. Plus… 3…” Jongin hesitates, going through the bullets in his head, “No, plus 4 GOE.” The only time skaters are allowed to stop practicing and hang out along the boards for this long is to watch other skaters’ program run-throughs and use the time to work on identifying features within a program. It’s an exercise in and of itself; the more acquantainted a skater is with how the judging system works, the easier it is for them to skate their own program to gain the advantage of the system.

“Quad Loop--nice exit, plus 4 in my opinion.” Jongin’s easily mesmerized by a program that he’s seen a billion times. “Triple Lutz. Euler. Triple Salchow. Base value 0. Scratchy, did not have that much distance. Salchow was squeezed in even though it had flow out of the landing.” 

“I think that’s a problem with real estate?” Minseok points out to Kibum. “When he’s done, tell him he needs to extend the entry further to the other side of the rink so as to make room for that Salchow.” 

“Agreed.” 

\--

“How was practice for you?” Jongin asks timidly when Taemin walks into the locker room, ducking his head against his short sleeve shirt to wipe sweat away. 

“S’fine.” Taemin sighs as he sits down. “How are you, Nini?” 

“I’m good, sunbae.” An awkward silence ensues while each skater wipes down their blades and takes their skates off with swift, practiced motions. Jongin sneaks glances over at Taemin while he does so. With a jolt, Jongin realizes that aside from small swells of muscles on Taemin’s arms, his sunbae is pretty much nothing but skin and bones. 

“Sunbae?” 

“Mmm.” 

“H-have you been eating? Enough?” 

Taemin glances down at his thin frame and passes a hand down the front of his shirt. “I’m fine, Nini. I always diet before a competition.” 

“That’s not healthy!” Jongin protests. “If anything, you need extra calories since you skate twice a day and workout so much as well… you won’t have any energy when you compete.” 

“The weight that I lose makes it easier to get height in my jumps. Kibum’s made you do off-ice jumps in ankle weights before, right?” Jongin nods slowly. “Yeah. That’s what an extra ten pounds would feel like. Imagine how much easier it is to jump without that extra baggage.” 

“B-but you’re so skinny already. Your rotation position is so tight--you get a bullet every time for it--surely a little extra height isn’t worth the hunger,” Jongin strips himself of his practice jacket and folds it neatly back into his suitcase. Currently, he’s still wearing his plain black one because his hard-earned Team South Korea jacket hasn’t arrived yet. 

“You’re kind, Nini. But don’t worry. I can handle it just fine.” Taemin reaches for his jacket and catches Jongin staring wistfully at it. They’re special; various pullovers and vests and jackets. Jongin has amassed a huge collection of them and has his favorites, but every skater dreams of someday owning a National team jacket. Each one is custom-made to fit their skaters’ measurements perfectly. They’re treated like gold, as are the skaters who wear South Korea’s flag over their left breast; non-National team members aren’t allowed to take pictures of themselves in such a jacket or wear them to a public practice session. Furthermore, any skater that’s on the National team who lets other skaters wear their jacket could even be expelled from the team. Owning a Team SK jacket means you’re the best of the best, and Jongin can hardly wait for his to arrive in the mail before the new season’s start. Taemin holds his out a little to Jongin. 

“Wanna try it on?” Jongin squeaks in surprise, shaking himself a little from his thoughts. Firstly, it’s a team jacket. And secondly, it’s  _ Taemin’s  _ jacket. It smells like him and is soft like him and it’s the most precious part of him. Jongin hesitates. 

“I can’t…” 

“We’re in the locker room. And you’ve earned yours, too. Here.” Taemin tosses the jacket into Jongin’s arms. “Just see how it looks on you.” There’s a trace of a knowing smile on his face when Jongin hesitantly slides his arms into the black sleeves and tugs it up onto himself. Jongin’s much more buff than Taemin, and he is once again shocked by how  _ tiny  _ Taemin is as he goes to the full length mirror in a corner of the locker room. He turns this way and that, brushing his fingers over the embroidered flag. 

“I never imagined myself in one of these,” Jongin murmurs. He can hardly envision what it’s like; getting to proudly step foot out of the locker room everyday in uniform. “I told Sehun that when mine came in the mail, I would even wear it to sleep,” he confesses to Taemin, who laughs out loud at this notion. 

“Is it that precious to you?” Taemin muses. 

“For me, I wasn’t noticed at all until this year at Nationals. I could only dream of owning one of these.” Jongin tugs the bottom of the cloth. “For someone like you, who earned one when you were fourteen, I guess it’s not that big of a deal if you’ve spent so many years wearing one.” 

“It’s still a big deal,” Taemin tells him. “I laughed because when I first got mine, that’s exactly what I did.” Jongin’s eyes widen, then crinkle into half-moon crescents with laughter. 

“Seriously?” 

“For real!” Taemin nods. “It’s special. I look forward to the new design every year. But the novelty of it has worn off now, though, and the jacket…” Taemin purses his lips just slightly. “How do I say this. It weighs you down.” Jongin vaguely understands what Taemin means. Taemin has to constantly prove, year in and year out, that he deserves to walk out of the locker room and into a stadium full of people representing his nation. It suddenly hits Jongin that simply wearing the jacket is different from owning it. This jacket has been all over the world. It has stood at press conferences and tops of international podiums. Jongin slips himself out of the jacket and gives it back to his sunbae. 

“Thank you, sunbae.” Jongin feels the need to bow a little for such an honor. Taemin gently reaches for it and folds it into his suitcase. 

“It was my pleasure, Nini. And don’t worry,” Taemin seems to read Jongin’s thoughts at least a little. “I get it. It’s exciting, and you should treasure your first one. Mine is still hanging up with my medals at home.” At this, Jongin laughs a little. “What’s funny?” 

“It’s just--” Jongin pictures rows and rows of Team South Korea jackets proudly displayed in a hallway in Taemin’s room, each slowly getting bigger as Taemin grows taller and fills out his lanky frame. “I can’t imagine how it must be, getting to grow up on the National team. It’s--it’s just ridiculous.” 

“Are you calling my accomplishments ridiculous?” When Jongin looks at Taemin, opening his mouth to protest, there’s a teasing glint in Taemin’s eye. “I’m kidding, Nini.” His lips part into a smile. “You should see your face right now. You look so scared.” Jongin flushes slightly pink. 

“I really look up to you, sunbae,” Jongin sits back down to finish packing up, deliberately slowing down his movements so as to finish around the same time as Taemin. When Taemin rises to his feet to throw away his used tissues in the trash, he sways a little, then tips forward. 

“Sunbae!” Jongin’s never moved faster in his life; catching Taemin just before his foot steps forward to catch himself. The elder slumps with his forehead against Jongin’s shoulder and grips Jongin’s forearms. 

“Sorry,” Taemin murmurs. “I’m fine.” 

“Sunbae, oh my god, you’re not,” Jongin’s heart is racing for multiple reasons. “Can… can you sit back down?” 

“Yeah…” But Taemin doesn’t move, hands still clutching the sides of Jongin’s shirt, head dropping down onto Jongin who stands stock still, not sure what he should do with his arms. Jongin silently curses himself for losing all semblance of brain cells whenever Taemin touches him. 

“Er… come on.” Tightly gripping onto the last of his common sense, Jongin places a shaking hand on Taemin’s thin waist and props him back upright, then guides him to sit back down on the bench. “Here, sunbae,” Jongin presses a water bottle into his hand, then fumbles for a snack bar from his own bag. “It’s probably because you haven’t been eating at all these past few days.” 

“Maybe,” Taemin’s hand shakes as well when he takes the water bottle. “Don’t tell Jjong,” he murmurs after a couple sips. “He’ll just worry.” 

“You can’t just hide that you’re passing out in locker rooms,” Jongin’s thunderstruck. “You’re going to seriously hurt yourself.” 

“I just… need to make it past Worlds,” Taemin gratefully accepts the snack bar from Jongin. 

“Sunbae, you’re supposed to be in  _ peak  _ condition for Worlds, not struggling to stand up.” 

“My program is in peak condition, and this is nothing out of the ordinary.” 

“Nothing out of--” Jongin’s head practically blows off the roof of the rink. “ _ You faint in locker rooms before every competition?”  _

“Lightheadedness isn’t uncommon. But it grounds me during competition. It’s easier for me to hyper focus, I suppose.” 

“No,” Jongin shakes his head. “No, no, no, sunbae, that’s not right at all.” 

“Trust me, Nini.” Taemin grabs ahold of Jongin’s wrist and firmly pulls him to sit next to Taemin. “Please. I’m not like this during the off season. There’s no need to tell anyone. I have you worrying to death right here, so it’s not like I don’t have anyone fussing about me.” And just like that, Jongin’s back to his floaty castle in which he gets to have a long-winded conversation with the cutest, prettiest, and most untouchable man he’s ever met in his life. 

“O-oh.” He fidgets restlessly while Taemin finishes his snack, then stands up again. “I’ll throw it away, just--just sit for a moment. Drink some water.” Jongin swallows a squeak when their hands brush together as Taemin passes him the wrapper. 

“Thank you, Nini.” Taemin brushes his hair tiredly out of his face. 

“Do you think you can… stand?” Jongin asks, carefully sitting down next to Taemin again. “Oh!” Jongin’s breath comes whooshing out of his lungs in a rush when Taemin leans his head against Jongin’s shoulder and closes his eyes. “S…” Words don’t even come out of his mouth anymore. “Sunbae,” Jongin tries weakly. Oh my god, Jongin’s going to have a heart attack at the tender young age of 18. Lee Taemin is leaning against his shoulder. His precious head is  _ touching Jongin’s shoulder and he has such long eyelashes and the prettiest lips in the whole country-- _

“Just…” Taemin’s breath tickles Jongin’s neck. “Stay here for a second.” Jongin wouldn’t have minded if he’d been stuck in this position for all eternity, but okay. Okay. He can stay. He can let Taemin-sunbae rest on his shoulder without thinking about how squishable his cheeks look, no matter how much weight he loses. He feels a sudden urge to poke them, and his hands curl around the thin bench and squeeze tightly to ground him back to reality. He will not poke. This is Lee Taemin, he can’t just touch art. 

\--

“Hey,” Jongdae calls, not looking up from his TV show when Jongin slams the door to their shared apartment. “How was practice?” 

“Fine.” Jongin drops his bag and slams the door shut to his room. At the noise, Jongdae glances up briefly, then to Chanyeol, whose entire length is sprawled out on the adjacent couch, aimlessly scrolling through his phone. Chanyeol shrugs. 

In his room, Jongin’s fist punches the air, then goes up to run wildly through his hair. He buries his face in a pillow in a silent scream. He tugs a sleeve of his shirt off his shoulder and glances at it in the mirror, as if Taemin might’ve left behind some confetti or sparkles from laying on it for all of five minutes. Taemin’s head was _ on his shoulder.  _ Jongin’s hand  _ was on Taemin’s waist.  _ Taemin said all he needed was  _ Jongin worrying about him.  _ He screams into another pillow, fit to burst from jubilation. He has to tell someone, he’s dying of happiness on his own. Jongin’s heart does spectacular flips as he considers his fanboying options, crossing out Sehun immediately. The brat would probably just tell Taemin immediately. So would Minho and Jinki and then he would never get to step foot inside the rink ever again. Yixing is a possibility, but Jongin just doesn’t feel like Yixing would  _ get it.  _ That leaves Baekhyun, Jjong, and his roommates. Jongin crosses out Baekhyun; he’d just talk about how Yixing’s better. And Jjong… that’s too weird, definitely not. Jongdae would make fun of him, and Chanyeol probably would as well. Jongin sighs as he reaches the conclusion that nobody but his own self would be so elated about Lee Taemin interaction. He screams into another pillow. 

\--

“Nini.” Jongin’s head jerks up from smiling ridiculously wide at the kimchi on his plate. “You can flirt all you want, the kimchi isn’t gonna dick you down.” Jongdae snorts.

“That’s--eurgh.” Jongin rolls his eyes and picks up his chopsticks again. 

“You seem awfully happy today,” Jongdae notes. “Care to share the love?” Jongin wiggles a little in his seat. 

“I don’t know how to bring it up,” Jongin confesses. “It’s… it’s really stupid.” Immediately, the teasing tone in Jongdae’s voice drops. 

“Hey.” That’s Chanyeol. “Nini, we might tease you all the time, but if there’s ever something that you’re really excited about or need to talk about? We’re all for it.” 

“What he said,” Jongdae nods solemnly. “Otherwise we wouldn’t be so invested in your skating. Or your lego sets.” 

“I--yeah.” Jongin’s gaze drops back to his plate. “I know.” 

“We live together, Nini,” Chanyeol reminds him, as if he could forget that he lives with the two loudest people Jongin has ever fucking met in his life. “Your happiness is our positive energy.” 

Jongin snorts at this. “You mean you suck the happiness out of me?” Jongdae grins devilishly. 

“Pretty much.” 

“I’ll let you guys know if I want to talk about it,” Jongin offers. “I’m just--I’m happy today.” 

“Sure, Nini.” His roommates’ gazes are both understanding, and Jongin appreciates what he’s trying to say. “Whenever.” 

‘Whenever’ turns out to be after midnight, when Jongdae finally stops trying to shove his dirty sock into Chanyeol’s mouth and Jongin finishes his lego steamboat that he’s been working on for days. With an enormous effort, Chanyeol shoves Jongdae off of him and stands up. 

“I’m going to bed. ‘Night, guys.” 

“G’night,” Jongin murmurs, still snapping pictures of his boat. Jongdae aims a playful kick at it. “DON’T!” 

“I’m joking. Good night, Nini.” Jongdae’s door closes quietly. Jongin sighs and shuts the lights off in the living room before turning in for the night, but he can’t fall asleep. His head is still swimming with his cute interactions with Taemin that afternoon, and at this point, Jongin thinks he’ll  _ explode  _ if he doesn’t talk to someone about how soft Taemin’s hair is. Sighing quietly, he pads out of his bedroom, clutching his pillow to his chest, and gently knocks on Chanyeol’s door just across the hall from him before letting himself in. He’s not surprised to find the elder with wet hair sitting up in bed, flicking through his phone in the dark before he gets tired enough to actually go to sleep. Chanyeol looks up in surprise at the silhouette of Jongin in his doorway. 

“Nini?” 

“I just… wanted… to… talk or something… I don’t know.” Jongin turns back to go to his own room, already regretting his life decisions. 

“Come here, Nini.” Chanyeol’s scooting over in bed. “I’ll listen.” Grateful, Jongin quickly lays his own pillow down and slips under the covers. Chanyeol promptly wraps an arm around Jongin and pulls the younger closer to himself, knowing how much Jongin appreciates skinship when he’s talking about something difficult. 

“What is it?” 

Jongin sighs. The words are so intimidating when they’re about to leave his mouth. “I--I have a crush on Taemin-sunbae,” he confesses quietly. His heart pounds like he’s announcing something far more surprising than a crush on a training mate. 

“Okay,” Chanyeol says softly. “Thank you for trusting me enough to tell me that.” 

“I think Jongdae already suspects it. And Sehun does, too. Actually, maybe everyone knows. I’m really bad with crushes.” Jongin buries himself in Chanyeol’s armpit. 

“How special is he? I’ve only exchanged a few words with him once or twice.” It’s a prompt to get Jongin to let out everything that he’s been bursting to tell, and Jongin rushes forth with  _ all of it.  _

“Oh my god, Yeollie, he’s so pretty. I don’t understand how someone can be so pretty. He has super squishy and soft cheeks and his hair is soooo soft. It looks so cute when it’s all ruffled after practice and he combs it back down. And his hands are TINY, Yeol. They’re  _ baby  _ hands. And he’s so strong and powerful on the ice, he picks up speed with like, two strokes, but off the ice I just wanna  _ protect at all costs _ . But it’s also really weird because,” and here, Jongin wilts a little, “Because he’s only a little older than me, not even a year, but he’s just so unattainable. I don’t know how to approach him and it’s not because I’m nervous or anything, it’s just cause he’s so good and he’s like a god but I’m just… like I don’t even know why he looks my way. So yeah.” Jongin huffs out a breath and Chanyeol ruffles Jongin’s hair gently. 

“You’ve got it bad, haven’t you?” Chanyeol chuckles. “He sounds like a great guy.” 

“He  _ is,  _ Yeollie. He’s so cute and amazing and pretty. I respect him so much and I just--I wanna be friends--but I also really want him to kiss me senseless,” Jongin says in a tiny voice. “I don’t know what to do.” 

“Aren’t you guys already friends?” Chanyeol points out. “You spend every day seeing each other and talk quite a lot already.” 

“But it’s kinda  _ awkward.  _ I don’t know what to say. It’s not like Minho or Jinki or Yixing hyung. I can just run up to them and climb on their back or whatever. I don’t know how Taemin-sunbae would react. And he’s got such a one-track mind, he’s so focused on skating…” Jongin lets out a helpless sigh. “I just like him  _ so  _ much, Yeollie. I don’t know what to do with myself. Today he leaned his head on my shoulder and he let me try on his jacket.” 

“Yeah?” 

“Yeah, he’s so smol, Chanyeol… his jacket barely fits me. He needs to eat more. I wanna take him out to dinner or something.” Jongin smiles at just the thought. “And his hair is so soft… he looks like an  _ angel  _ when he closes his eyes.” 

“He sounds very cute.” Chanyeol’s hand strokes through strands of Jongin’s hair slowly.

“He is! He’s so cute.” Jongin giggles a little into the dark. “I can’t stop thinking about him.” 

“Do you think he likes you back?” Chanyeol pulls Jongin a little closer and shifts. Jongin deflates. 

“I don’t think so,” Jongin says forlornly. “Like I said, he’s so not interested in a relationship. Especially not with me. I don’t even know if he’s gay. Or bi, whatever. No hate.” 

“Don’t say that, Nini. You never know.” Chanyeol chuckles. “Remember when Jongdae was like, ‘I don’t wanna label things, I just want to kiss guys but I’m totally straight,’ and now he has a giant bi flag up in his room?”

“Yeah, but Taemin’s like--asexual. Er, well, he’s not asexual, but he’s in love with his skates. His jumps are like his children.” Chanyeol’s chest rumbles in amusement with this analogy. 

“Maybe when he’s less busy. From what I’ve heard, he’s got quite a lot on his plate with Worlds just around the corner.” 

“Maybe.” Jongin’s still unconvinced, but at least he’s gotten all the fanboying out of his system. “Thanks for listening, Yeollie.” 

“Of course, Nini. Anytime.” Jongin makes to get out of Chanyeol’s bed, but the hand around his shoulder pulls him back in. “You don’t have to leave if you don’t want to.” 

“Can I?” Jongin asks almost petulantly. He loves cuddles. 

“Sure.” Chanyeol slides down into the covers and drapes an arm around Jongin’s waist. “I hope this Taemin guy likes cuddling.” 

“Me, too.” Jongin’s heart swells at the thought. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> WHIPPED  
> aren't we all.  
> Please poll:  
> Does Lee Taemin like cuddles? :3  
> Love you guys so much. Thank you for all the nice comments, kudos, and support.  
> Hearts for Arane who's always around for moral and linguistic advice ;)  
> \--  
> Congratulations to Jongdae and best of luck to Junmyeon during enlistment (-14.00 eyesight, what the HELL)  
> And happy birthday to Baekhyun, who's the CUTEST THING I HAVE E V E R--


	7. Chapter 7

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> For your reading pleasure, feel free to play tracks as they pop up in the chapter:  
> [Carmen Suite; the one that Minho *rightfully* bitches about (it's so overused ugh)](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yNLVKM7V3_E)  
> [Taemin's free skate music that by this point is so overplayed that Minho, Jinki, and Jongin could cover it via acapella :3](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hgppaYYNyZQ)

“Are you gonna ask ‘em?” Jongdae inquires, leaning against his usual wall of the locker room after spectating a coach-less practice.

“Ask us what?” Minho glances up at Jongin who looks confused for a brief moment, then remembers. 

“Ohh--do you guys wanna come over to our place to watch Worlds? So we can cheer Taemin-sunbae on?” 

“I’m assuming the free skate?” Jinki doesn’t lift his eyes from where he’s bending over to untie his skate. 

“Er, yeah. Yeah, not tonight.” Jongin glances at his watch. There’s about one hour until the Senior Men’s short program begins, and about two until Taemin skates; he’d been randomly assigned to the third group out of four. “I feel like we should support him as well and make it a little special. You know, since we’re not as enthusiastic as Jjong… ” 

“That man’s on another level,” Jongdae remarks. “Like, do I come and watch Nini’s practices when I’m bored?  _ Sure _ . Do I like screaming obscenely loud and attempting to drag Chan and Baek to all of his local competitions?  _ Absolutely _ . But booking a ticket to Japan to go cheer him on? Sorry, Jonginie.” 

Jongin snorts. “You won’t even do the laundry when it’s your turn, I don’t expect much.” This earns him a playful shove from Jongdae, sending him tumbling into Yixing. “Whoops, sorry, hyung.” 

“All good.” Yixing places a hand on his hoobae’s shoulder to right him again. “I will come.” 

“Can I bring Jun?” Sehun asks, and Jongin shrugs. 

“I guess.” 

“‘Kay.” Sehun turns back to unwrapping the skate tape from around his boot. “I need to get new skates,” he mutters more to himself than anyone else. 

“Hyungs?” Jongin turns towards Minho and Jinki, who both murmur affirmation. 

“Okay!” Jongdae claps his hands. “It’s a party, then.” 

“Jongin,” Yixing murmurs, pulling on a sleeve of Jongin’s pullover. 

“Yeah, hyung?” Jongin turns towards him expectantly, pretty sure what to expect when Yixing’s face turns slightly pink. 

“Will Baekhyun come?” His voice is barely above a whisper.

“I don’t know,” Jongin spares him the teasing and offers him a gentle smile, knowing how awkward it can be. “I’m sure you know that he’s been really busy with gaming lately…” 

“I know because I watch, but not from him.” Yixing looks like a kicked puppy, and Jongin makes a mental note to kick Baekhyun. Nothing is worse than seeing Yixing’s dejected face. 

“I will definitely ask him, hyung. And you’re free to invite him as well,” Jongin suggests lightly, but Yixing shrugs. 

“He has not text me yet even though he ask for my number two weeks ago…” 

“Do you have his number?” Jongin asks, and at this, Yixing shakes his head slowly. “Here, I’ll give it to you.” Jongin fumbles for his phone. “I have a feeling he might come if you ask him instead of me,” Jongin keeps his tone lighthearted. “Just sayin’.” 

“Maybe.” Yixing quickly adds Baekhyun’s contact into his phone. “Thank you, Nini.” 

\--

Yixing sighs, settling down to eat dinner and opening his phone absentmindedly. Baekhyun’s contact pops up right where Yixing left it. He hesitates, thumb hovering over the little blue text icon. 

[Yixing]

Hello?

[Byun Baekhyun]

Yixing-ssi? 

How did you get my number?

[Yixing]

Nini give to me, hope you do not mind

[Byun Baekhyun]

It’s fine

And the conversation stops rather awkwardly. Yixing has no idea what to say; he hadn’t expected such a quick reply. He might as well ask Baekhyun if he wants to come to the party, he supposes. 

[Yixing]

Does Nini ask you yet about watching Worlds?

[Byun Baekhyun]

Yeah

I’ll have to see.

Yixing sighs at the ambivalent response.

[Yixing]

I hope you can come… 

[Byun Baekhyun]

What, you wanted to see me?

[Yixing]

Yes~

[Byun Baekhyun]

Oh

Yixing furrows his brows in confusion and helplessness. He’d really missed the flirty boy who only shuts up when Yixing kisses him and watches Yixing like a hawk on the ice, even if he only stays but a few minutes… but Baekhyun doesn’t even seem to want to talk to him now. 

[Byun Baekhyun]

Did you watch LCK?

[Yixing]

Yes

Congratulations on win against KT Rolster~

[Byun Baekhyun]

Thank you

The texting comes to another abrupt halt. Yixing sighs, unsure of what to say next. Baekhyun might carry games as if they are nothing (which they aren’t to him), but Yixing’s back hurts from carrying their conversation.  _ Is this what spending more than half your life staring at a computer does to your social skills? _ Yixing wonders vaguely as he watches the grey text bubble pop up and disappear multiple times. If so, Yixing’s suddenly very glad that his mother forced him off of his screen and onto the ice.

[Yixing]

Why did you not text me? 

Yixing knows he sounds petulant, but he’s genuinely more than a little unsettled that all the obvious attraction they had for each other seems to have been quelled or at least forced into submission by the younger. 

[Byun Baekhyun]

I was busy

[Yixing]

Oh

Suddenly, Yixing feels a rush of guilt and panic well up inside him.  _ Was it his fault?  _ Had he rushed Baekhyun? Made him uncomfortable? What if Baekhyun hadn’t been okay with that kiss in the locker room and now he doesn't like him at all? Yixing’s gut twists at just the thought and he quickly types an apology--

[Yixing]

Is it something I did?

I am sorry 

[Byun Baekhyun]

WHAT

Wait

[Yixing]

I should not have rush you

I was wrong

[Byun Baekhyun]

No

Wait

Please it wasn’t you

I just

[Yixing]

I am really sorry Baekhyun-ssi

[Byun Baekhyun]

NO

Don’t be sorry please

It’s not you it’s me

Fuck that was so cringy i’m sosorry i’m really bad at this

[Yixing]

It is okay...

[Byun Baekhyun]

It’s not what you think 

I’m just

Jesus Christ, Yixing’s head is whirling with seven different emotions. This may quite possibly be the strangest and most awkward conversation he’s ever had in his life with someone. For all his flirting and cheeky remarks during his streams, Yixing has  _ never  _ met someone as socially inept as Baekhyun when it comes to real life. 

[Yixing]

Are you okay?

[Byun Baekhyun]

I feel like I should be saying sorry

[Yixing]

Why?

[Byun Baekhyun]

You even told me to do well

[Yixing]

What? 

[Byun Baekhyun]

I let you down

[Yixing]

I do not understand

[Byun Baekhyun]

LCK Week 7

And suddenly, Yixing starts piecing together the puzzle. 

[Yixing]

So? 

[Byun Baekhyun]

I fed  _ seven  _ kills

Played like absolute shit

[Yixing]

It not your fault

They ban LeBlanc so you could not play her

[Byun Baekhyun]

That shouldn’t matter

I shouldn’t be here if I’m shut down by a single ban

Fuck and like

You told me good luck

I know you watched that match

[Yixing]

None of that matter to me… 

[Byun Baekhyun]

It matters to ME

Sorry but like it’s not even just you

The whole country watched me get decimated

[Yixing]

You are panicking

Calm down 

[Byun Baekhyun]

Whatever 

I’m fine

[Yixing]

Baekhyun-ssi we do not always win 

I did not win at Nationals this year

Did not make World team

[Byun Baekhyun]

… 

[Yixing]

I should have make Worlds

I could have

But I fall just once

And so I place third not first

Am I bad skater because of it?

[Byun Baekhyun]

No

You’re amazing on the ice

Yixing suppresses a small smile at the simple compliment before continuing. 

[Yixing]

One game where you do not play best does not matter

I know you are top player

And you win this week

Please do not be bad to yourself 

[Byun Baekhyun]

I just

I need to train harder

It’s still not acceptable

[Yixing]

Okay that is fine

But know it is okay to fall 

If you are afraid to fall then you should not be athlete

And you are athlete too

[Byun Baekhyun]

I want you to be proud of me.

[Yixing]

Oh

I am proud of you already Baekhyun-ssi

I am Kyoong fan, always support you no matter what

[Byun Baekhyun]

What about Byun Baekhyun?

[Yixing]

There is a lot to be said about him. 

\--

“Can you guys commentate?” Jongdae complains, leaning against Chanyeol on the already-filled sofa. 

“There’s literally a commentator,” Jongin protests, cupping a handful of pretzels while staring at the TV where the third group of skaters is warming up. The anticipation within the apartment is more palpable now, as the skaters who have done better in the short program are now beginning to warm up. The real competition is starting to make their appearances, although there had already been some good performances, such as the one put up by Alexander Samarin of Russia. 

“But it makes more sense when you guys commentate,” Jongdae sighs. 

“We… we say the exact same things that they do,” Jinki suppresses a laugh. 

“Can you at least explain artistry? I still don’t understand the difference between technical panel and artistry panel…” 

“Ah, okay, that’s not  _ quite  _ how it works.” Jinki sits up and begins explaining patiently. Jongin tunes out, but he’s surprised and gratified as Jongdae and Chanyeol listen with wide, interested eyes. 

“The technical panel calls elements valid or invalid, but it’s anywhere from three to nine judges that award GOEs. Their majority is what makes the skater’s total score. And there’s no such thing as an artistry panel--judges also grade elements of artistry such as skating skills, transitions, presentations, interpretation of the music, yadda yadda. Each element gets points anywhere from 0.25 to 10.00.” 

“Wait--” Jongdae groans in exasperation. “I thought Jjong said that there were five technical panel judges and five artistic judges.” 

“He’s right. The technical panel  _ is _ made up of five people, but there are three to nine judges that award GOEs for technique  _ and _ artistry. He was just  _ slightly _ confused between the technical panel and the judges. Those are separate people with different jobs.” 

“What does the technical panel do?” Jongdae asks helplessly. 

“They tell the judges if an element counts or not. They review elements to see if it was under-rotated and things like that.” 

“And--and the judges--” 

“Give GOEs for all elements attempted and award artistic points.” Jinki nods. 

“Why is it so  _ complicated _ ?” Jongdae demands. Jinki spreads his hands in a gesture of helplessness. 

“I didn’t make the rules. Overall, it maintains as much objectivity as possible. And it has worked quite well, so…” 

“Is Jin Boyang trying Quad Lutz today?” Jongin asks offhandedly as the Chinese skater warms up a Triple Lutz. Yixing sighs as he glances at his teammate and competitor that made Worlds instead of him. 

“Yes. And he has two Quad Toes plan. One in combination.” 

“How’s your Quad Lutz going, Xing?” Minho turns to look at Yixing sitting neatly on a small couch. 

“It is fine. But I still not put into my program. My Toe and Loop are much better.” 

“What’s the difference?” Chanyeol asks this time. “Or at least order of difficulty.” 

“Salchow is easiest. Then Toe, Loop, Flip, Lutz, Axel in that order.” 

“How do you ever tell them apart?” Jongdae muses. “I mean, I can find Axel’s now, because they’re easy to spot when the skater starts forwards. But everything else, I’m at a complete loss…” 

“I’ll point them out for you,” Jinki offers. 

“Sehun,” Jongin intones, and the youngest skater looks up from his cuddle session on the loveseat. 

“Yes?” His hands don’t stop threading through Junmyeon’s hair affectionately. 

“I--” Jongin looks helplessly at them, then looks back to the TV and shuts his mouth with a snap of his teeth. “Never mind.” Sehun sniggers before pecking Junmyeon on the cheek, much to the elder’s happiness. 

“I actually quite like Kolyada,” Minho remarks as the first skater takes the ice. “He’s a nice guy and a great skater.” 

“Lots of potential,” Jinki agrees. The two of them are squashed on the couch next to Jongdae and Chanyeol. Jongin sits on the floor in front of them with a cushion. 

“WHY?!” Minho explodes in frustration as the sounding strings of ‘Carmen Suite’ begin. 

“Is it even a competition if somebody doesn’t skate to Carmen?” Jongin groans as well. “It’s so overused…” 

“So many pieces of music, and you choose  _ Carmen…”  _

“First jump, Quad Toe -> Triple Toe combination,” Jinki tells Jongdae as promised, ignoring Minho and Jongin’s complaints. “He picks into the ice with his less dominant foot and launches himself into the air with his dominant foot.” 

“Is that a Toe as well?” Jongdae picks up quickly as the Russian goes into his second jump. 

“Very nice,” Jinki praises. “Yes. Oof--he stepped out on the landing, probably a negative 3 GOE for that one.” 

“And that’s an Axel,” Jongdae identifies as Kolyada enters the jump with a forward takeoff. Four heads nod in affirmation. 

“Are you even paying attention?” Jongin demands, glancing at Sehun, who only has eyes for his boyfriend.

“No,” Sehun murmurs. “I’ll watch when Taemin-sunbae comes on.” 

“Just let him be,” Minho leans down to pat the top of Jongin’s head affectionately from where he leans against Minho’s knee. “He’s young and in love.” 

“Exactly,” Sehun goes back to draping his tall self around Junmyeon. 

“That was strange,” Yixing remarks quietly as Kolyada does a Triple Salchow -> Euler -> Double Salchow jump sequence. “Do not see that very often.” 

“See what? The weird jump thing he did in between?” Jongdae asks, and Jinki picks up on explanations. 

“That’s called an Euler and it’s used to connect jumps in a sequence. Yixing was saying that Triple Sal -> Double Sal is a weird sequence to use because it is not very worth it in terms of points. Also, a Salchow can be identified if a skater’s dominant skate  _ just  _ touches the ice as it sweeps around before they jump. It’s an edge jump.” 

“An edge jump?” 

“There are two types of jumps; toe jumps and edge jumps. Toe jumps are Toe, Flip, and Lutz. Edge jumps are Salchow, Loop, and Axel. Toe jumps use the toe pick--the jagged thing on the front of our blades--to get up into the air, while edge jumps only rely on edges.” 

“Okay, let me process that,” Jongdae’s head is swimming. “That’s so much info.” 

“I know. It’s a lot,” Jinki laughs as he pats Jongdae’s back comfortingly. Sehun chooses this moment to finally speak up. 

“That’s what he said.” 

“Junmyeon, shut him up,” Jongin demands as the room groans. Junmyeon acquiesces eagerly with a kiss.

\--

The fourth and last group of men is on the ice warming up when the doorbell rings and Jongin shakes himself from his stupor of watching Taemin circle round and round on the ice. 

“I’ll get it.” He pulls himself up. “It’s probably Baek.” 

“Baekhyun?” Yixing immediately sits up from the couch. 

“Yeah, he said he’d drop by if he finished practice early enough,” Jongin tosses over his shoulder. “Hey!” 

“Hey. Taemin--?” 

“Not yet, you’re just in time to catch the final six. He made it into the final warm-up.” Jongin eyes Baekhyun. “I think you have someone who’s excited to see you,” he adds conspiratorially. Baekhyun’s eyes flicker nervously. 

“I--okay.” Baekhyun stuffs his hands into the pocket of his sweatshirt as Jongin pushes him into the living room and seven pairs of eyes glance up at him interestedly. 

“Nice to see you again!” Jinki chirps as general murmurs of greeting fill the room. Baekhyun nods distractedly, eyes focusing on Yixing, who offers a small, nervous smile. 

“Have a seat,” Jongin purrs, practically pushing him toward Yixing. “Don’t be shy.” 

“I can just sit on the floor with you--” 

“There’s not enough room,” Jongin insists, and Baekhyun looks bewilderedly at the open space on the rug. “Go sit with Yixing-hyung.” 

“Okay,” Yixing agrees quietly, scooting over on the couch and offering Baekhyun half the spot. Minho and Jinki look thoroughly amused at the situation and Sehun clutches Junmyeon’s hand gleefully as Baekhyun makes his way to his seat. Because it’s so small, Baekhyun’s thigh brushes against Yixing’s warm one, and Baekhyun flinches a little bit when he’s squashed next to Yixing. 

“There’s  _ definitely  _ enough room on the floor, Jongin--” 

“No,” Jongin protests, laying sideways and tucking the cushion under his elbow. “And hush, let me watch in peace.” 

“How are you?” Yixing’s hand lands a light touch on Baekhyun’s shoulder before pulling away. “Was practice good?” 

“Yeah,” Baekhyun swallows nervously. “It was good.” 

“Okay,” Yixing smiles gently. “Do not be so stiff, Baekhyun-ssi. Relax, enjoy. These are the best skaters in the competition.” 

“So what are we?” Minho grumbles, and Yixing spreads his hands helplessly. 

“I cannot help politics either. I wish I was there, too.” Yixing motions to the screen where American Vincent Zhou is shaking his legs out along the barrier, getting ready to skate. 

“When does Taemin-sunbae skate?” Jongin asks anxiously. 

“Last.” The tension in the room grows as the strongest contenders of the season lay down personal best after personal best. 

“Why do you all look so stressed?” Jongdae glances around to Jinki, who hasn’t cracked a smile since Zhou’s score has popped up, to Minho, whose competitive spirit has been roused and is glaring daggers at the screen while Yuzuru Hanyu lands a flawless Triple Axel, to Yixing, who’s nervously bouncing his leg, and Jongin, who looks like he’s about to pass out. 

“Because Vincent is in first place right now,” Jinki’s voice is hollow, “and he scored 187 for the free skate. Taemin’s best is, what…?” 

“188,” Jongin supplies. 

“Yes, his personal best for the free skate is literally one point away from Vincent. And Taemin didn’t break 100 in the short program a couple days ago--he’s in fifth place with a 94-point short program. So the odds of him beating  _ any  _ of the top three…” Jinki trails off, but Jongdae can do the math on his own. “That’s not to mention  _ him-- _ ” Jinki nods to Yuzuru Hanyu on the screen, “And Nathan Chen still haven’t finished skating yet.” 

“What about them?” Chanyeol inquires, and Minho laughs recklessly. 

“They’re unbeatable.” 

“Quite literally,” Jinki agrees. “If either of their names show up on a roster anywhere, you already know who’s taking home gold or silver. Everyone else can just dream and fight for the scraps.” 

“But we’re practically guaranteed two places for next year,” Jongin points out. “There’s no way Taemin will slip out of the top ten now.” 

“We don’t  _ want  _ two places, we want three,” Minho growls. “The Skating Federation sent Taem knowing we’d collect two places. They’re betting on three places and we can only get that if Taemin places in the Top Two.” 

“But you just said Chen and Hanyu were unbeatable,” Jongdae murmurs. 

“ _ Exactly. _ To say we’re fucked isn’t really an understatement, it’s just how it is right now.” Baekhyun flinches suddenly and Minho turns towards the sudden movement. “You good?” 

“Yes,” Baekhyun squeaks, but when Minho turns his undivided attention back to Hanyu’s performance, Baekhyun looks helplessly to Yixing, whose hand has slipped into Baekhyun’s and is squeezing the life out of his fingers. 

“Sorry,” Yixing pulls away. “I am nervous, I--” Baekhyun grabs onto the retreating tips of his fingers and carefully interlaces their hands again between warm thighs. Yixing hesitates, then leans ever-so-subtly towards Baekhyun. 

“Well,” Sehun pipes off after a long period of silence when Hanyu finishes his program. 

“That’s a lot of Pooh’s,” Chanyeol comments. The amount of Winnie the Pooh plushies raining down on the ice is just absurd, and Jongin has to suppress the urge to laugh at the ridiculousness of the Pooh hailstorm for Hanyu in his home country.

“It’s kind of a thing,” Jongin says lamely. “To throw stuffed animals and roses down on the ice after. And Hanyu really likes Winne the Pooh, so.” 

“He miss the Salchow,” Yixing offers as Hanyu sits down in the kiss and cry zone to wait for his score after a near-perfect performance. “Negative GOE on it…oh.” 

“Oh fuuucckkkk.” Jongin covers his face with his hands as the 206.10 pops up on the scoreboard. “Fuck. Shit. This is bad.” 

“Come here,” Jinki tugs on the back collar of Jongin’s shirt and pats his thigh. “Let’s watch together.” Jongin scrambles up and deposits himself on the already-crowded sofa on Jinki’s lap, clinging to him nervously as they watch the most anticipated skater of the night circle the rink slowly with a focused face. 

“So Hanyu is in First with 300.97,” Minho’s face is scrunched up with calculations. “And Chen might break 300 as well.” 

“Just wait until Nathan Chen finishes,” Jinki pleads. “And then we can figure out what he needs. If Taem can just shove one of them off--” 

“His  _ best  _ is 280 from Nationals,” Minho snarls. “His best score is twenty points below what he needs for top 2.” 

“He didn’t skate clean at Nationals,” Jongin argues. “His potential is like 295 and he rearranged his program to up the risk as well.” 

“Please don’t talk,” Sehun begs, clutching onto Junmyeon as Chen’s music starts. Yixing holds his breath as the 19-year old superstar flies into a Quad Lutz and lands it effortlessly. Jongin decides not to mention the 4.76 (as in, near-perfect GOE) that pops up in the corner of the screen. 

“So I know I shouldn’t say this,” Sehun murmurs as Nathan lands a Quad Flip. “But I kinda hope he falls--” 

“Don’t say that,” Jinki and Yixing say at the same time. “That’s not good sportsmanship,” Jinki frowns at Sehun. 

“You were thinking it, too,” Sehun grumbles under his breath while Junmyeon strokes his hair comfortingly. 

“Woah.” Minho sits up when Nathan does a Quad Toe but leaves out the Triple Toe afterwards that would’ve made it a combination. “Did he just--” 

“Yeah, I noticed, too.” Jongin shuffles on Jinki’s lap. “He left out the combination.” 

“What? What?” Jongdae looks from one skater to another. “What happened?” 

“In his PPC--” 

“What’s a PPC?” It’s Chanyeol this time.

“They showed it in the warm-up. It’s the list of planned elements that the skater is going to execute in their program. There’s no deduction for straying away from the PPC but it just helps the judges glean an idea of what to expect,” Jinki explains with an edge of impatience. “I swear he had a combination planned there.” 

“He probably has a motive for it. That landing was perfect. It can’t be that he just couldn’t execute it.” Minho chews his lip. “Just wait, I bet he’s rearranging his program mid-competition.” 

“For  _ what?”  _ Jongdae insists. 

“Because he knows he can’t win with his current PPC, so he’s using the rules to his advantage.” 

“What are the rules? What is that? What’s he doing?” Jongdae pelts the tension in the air with incessant questions, which Minho barely registers, and Jongin begins the process of explanation. 

“The rules state that the last three jumping passes of a free skate gain an extra 10% bonus from their original base value. Minho-hyung is saying that Nathan is probably rearranging his program to max out the number of points he can earn in order to top Hanyu’s score.” 

“And there it is,” Minho announces as Nathan lands the Quad Toe -> Triple Toe combination. “He wanted the bonus points on his combination, even if it was more risky because he’s probably physically half-dead.” Jongin heaves a sigh as the last few elements of Nathan’s program are also spot-on and claps along with everyone else in the living room. 

“Taemin…” Minho murmurs, bouncing his leg furiously. “C’mon, kid.” There’s no doubt that Taemin, who’s currently circling the ice, getting into his focused mindset, has heard the screams and cheers for the two skaters before him. The camera pans back to Nathan in the kiss and cry, and Jongin feels Jinki’s arms wrapped around his stomach tighten when the scores pop up. The crowd roars its approval as Nathan’s face splits into a wide smile. 

“If you guys aren’t aware,” Minho says hollowly, “That’s his reaction to setting a new world record.” 

“WHAT?” Jongdae shrieks. “He’s not even excited?” Nathan’s smile is genuinely happy and proud, but nothing out of the ordinary--as if setting world records just comes with the job. And, Jongin supposes, if you’re Nathan Chen, it’s probably not exciting anymore. Every one of his personal bests just sets a new world record. 

“Oh please,” One of Yixing’s arms has snaked around to cradle a limp Baekhyun against his shoulder gently. “Taemin…” 

“It’s okay,” Baekhyun manages. He’s the only person that isn’t focusing on the television; instead his head is swimming with the smell of cotton and mandarin oranges. “He’ll be okay.” 

“Let’s GO,” Kibum slams the sideboards and shakes Taemin a little on the screen. “Just get it  _ done. _ ” 

“That’s right,” Minho is standing up now, pacing the room. “Get it done, Taeminnie.” 

“Sit down, you’re making me nervous,” Sehun snaps. “Just watch.” 

“Taemin-sunbae,” Jongin’s voice is barely above a whisper as the camera catches Taemin’s glassy, tunneled gaze. 

“He’s in the loneliest possible place in the world right now,” the female commentator on the screen begins as Taemin presents with a practiced smile to the mildly disinterested audience. After the top two stars, nobody’s interested in watching the last skater anymore as the podium is basically locked in place, which makes Jongin wilt slightly at that knowledge. “18-year old Lee Taemin of South Korea. All the pressure rests on those young shoulders.” 

“This is his first appearance at the World Championships as a Senior,” a male voice picks up. “Made it into the final warm-up group with 94.76 points in the short program. But it’ll take a massive effort to follow up with gorgeous skates from both Chen and Hanyu.” 

“Oh, shut up,” Minho snarls. “Just start the music, let him follow up.” 

“Hayoon-ssi, what should we expect from Lee tonight?” The male commentator asks as the music that Jongin’s so used to hearing starts up and Taemin promptly falls into character. 

“Power and young charisma. His jumps are explosive with just a tad of roughness around the edges. He’s one of South Korea’s rising stars, but still rather inexperienced compared to skaters such as Shim and Choi.” 

“Then send me, not the poor kid,” Minho balls his hands up into fists. “Goddamn.” 

“That’s right, nice Triple Loop by him there, by the way was--” Jongin stops listening and his jaw drops. 

“Ummm?!” Jongin makes out. 

“What is he  _ doing _ ?” Minho explodes. “LEE TAEMIN--” 

“QUIET!” Sehun insists. 

“--supposed to be a Quad-Triple combination, seems like Lee has different thoughts up his sleeve tonight,” the commentary drones on, and Jinki groans. 

“No, no no no.” Jinki yanks Jongin closer. He’s practically just Jinki’s teddy bear at this point. “He can’t rearrange to this extent.” 

“Will you all just let him skate? I’d be doing the same thing in his place!” Minho explodes when Taemin lands his Quad Salchow. “NICE.” 

“Plus 3 GOE,” Yixing whispers above Baekhyun’s hair. “Next is Triple Axel.” 

“What the  _ fuck, _ ” Jongin croaks as Taemin neglects the planned choreography and barrels into a flawless Triple Axel from a counter-turn--a difficult entry that earns him one more bullet than he usually gets, but makes the jump just that much more risky. “Plus 4.” 

“No, plus  _ 5, _ ” Jinki corrects as the GOE tips upwards in the upper left-hand corner of the TV screen to a 4.66. “He has some enthusiastic judges, damn.” 

“Combination spin,” Yixing returns to commentating for Baekhyun, “outside edge, one difficult feature. Jump within the spin, another feature. Change of core within sit spin. All three positions. Level 4, the maximum level for a spin, with plus 2 GOE.” Baekhyun’s hand reaches shakily for Yixing’s right hand and clasps it gently. 

“Keep commentating,” Baekhyun murmurs. “It calms you down, doesn’t it?” 

“Yes. Suppose to be Triple Loop here, but he change--Quad Lutz -> Triple Loop--” 

“TRIPLE LOOP! TRIPLE LOOP! MINHO HE DID A TRIPLE LOOP--” 

“I GOT IT!” Minho roars over Jongin’s excited screaming. 

“What?” Jongdae mouths to Chanyeol, who also sits in utter confusion over the chaos that just erupted. 

“That’s an  _ INSANE  _ combination,” Jinki spares the breath to tell him. “Nobody does it. It’s way too difficult. And he had planned Lutz-Toe; that Lutz-Loop combination wasn’t practiced at all.” 

“He literally pulled it out of his ass,” Sehun’s on his feet now as well. 

“But negative GOE--” Jongdae points to the screen,

“Doesn’t matter. Yeah, he had a scratchy landing on it, but it’s still worth about one point more.” 

“All that for one point?” Jongdae gawks. 

“One point will make or break the program, okay?” Minho says. “If he’d gotten one more point at Nationals he would’ve beaten me. And it’s life or death right now, the kid’s doing great.” 

“The audience just got so much louder,” Chanyeol mentions. 

“Hard act to follow, huh?” Minho snorts. “It’s Lee Taemin, remember the name.” 

“Quad Loop,” Jongin murmurs. This is the one that Taemin nearly ran him over with. “Perfect.” 

“Plus 3 GOE,” Yixing nods, squeezing Baekhyun’s hand tightly. 

“Triple Flip -> Euler -> Triple Salchow. Last jumping pass,” Jongin’s breathless. “Please--please--YEAH!” The audience roars and Jongin jumps up and down as well, having vacated Jinki’s lap to clutch at Minho excitedly. 

“They’re on their feet already,” Jinki buries his head in his arms. “Look at the audience, he hasn’t even finished his step sequence.” Jinki’s right. The once disinterested audience is now clapping along to the music, on their feet thirty seconds before the end of the program. Taemin launches himself into his final combination spin and hits his ending pose, then promptly drops to his knees on the ice, gasping for breath. 

“THAT’S MY BOY!” Kibum mouths to the camera. Minho clasps his hands above his head and crashes back onto the couch with Jongin in tow. 

“What a performance by Lee tonight,” the female commentator is saying, “surpassed anyone’s expectations--completely rearranged his program and disregarded his PPC, we’ll have to see what the judges think about this turn of events!” 

“It’s too early to say yet, but I will chance this--he  _ may  _ have just nudged himself in between Chen and Hanyu, Hayoon-ssi. Hanyu certainly left out a big margin of points with his Quad Salchow, and with that program under Lee’s belt, he may be coming home with some big rewards tonight.” 

“Look at that technical score,” Jinki murmurs. 

“He won’t get first,” Minho barely spares a glance upwards. “It doesn’t pass Chen, does it?” 

“No. What was Hanyu’s?” Jongin desperately tries to remember. 

“I don’t know,” Sehun has taken up pacing the room. “Second? Second? Will he make it?” 

“I don’t KNOW,” Minho grits his teeth while Taemin collapses into Kibum’s arms and promptly earns a light punch. 

“What was that? We planned none of that,” the microphone picks up on Kibum’s slew of slightly pissed but proud comments. “Where did the Lutz-Loop combination come from?!” 

“I don’t… know…” Taemin waves to the kiss-and-cry camera. “Hi Jjong, hi mom and dad. Hi everyone back home.” 

“Hey!” The living room laughs as Taemin waves to them. 

“Cute,” Jongin murmurs. 

“Agreed.” But Jinki still shoots him a teasing glance. 

“The scores for Lee Taemin, please.” Jongin’s blood freezes over. 

  
  
  
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *absolutely shit-eating grin*  
> Hey~  
> Missed you guys so I wanted to update ^_^  
> Sorry. That's really cheesy  
> ALSO:  
> Here are the performances!  
> [Nathan Chen](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-Kux5S6MJfE)  
> [Yuzuru Hanyu](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jsKo38YOphc)  
> If these performances are blocked in your countries, try this link:  
> [Worlds 2019](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zJ42qYcKwbI&t=12534s) Yuzuru Hanyu is at 3:36:47 and Nathan Chen is at 3:46:44.  
> Hope you guys enjoyed!


	8. Chapter 8

“216.02, that’s the magic number to take the lead,” The male commentator is saying, and Jongin buries his face into Minho’s shoulder. “And he needs 206.10 to beat Hanyu, 186.99 to make it on the podium…” 

“I can’t.” Jongin’s breathing is shallow and quick. “I can’t do this.” 

“Yes, you can, Nini. Watch the damn TV. Imagine how nervous  _ he _ is.” Minho’s grip on Jongin’s forearm is so tight, Jongin’s pretty sure it’d make a decent tourniquet if he ever needed one. Taemin’s face is shiny with sweat as he sits and watches the Jumbotron in the kiss-and-cry, watching the slow-motion replays of his performance. 

“206. We can do it. We can make 206,” Sehun pleads as if trying to convince himself. “C’mon, sunbae. Just 206.” 

“He just laid down the performance of his life,” Jinki murmurs. “They  _ can’t _ just disregard that. He fought with every muscle he has.” 

“They will do anything for a show,” Yixing clutches Baekhyun close to his chest, leaving the gamer boy completely breathless. Yixing’s cuddles are so warm and comforting and Baekhyun says a silent thank-you to Taemin for putting him in this situation. 

“What’s taking them so long?” Junmyeon frets, rubbing Sehun’s back in soothing circles. 

“Exactly,” Jongin groans, “just give us the score, he’s the last skater, I can’t fucking do this, just--” 

“The scores for Lee Taemin.” 

“Shh, shh, shh,” Jinki physically puts an arm out to press an excited Jongin back, as if him leaning forward might do anything to delay the score. 

“His technical score is 112.45 and program component score is 96.89--” Jongdae lets out an excited yell before anyone else does. 

“HE MADE IT!” 

“HE DID?!” Jongin places all his faith onto Jongdae’s computing skills but he doesn’t need to; the scores are right in front of their eyes as they pop up on the screen, and Jongin promptly dissolves into a strangled sob-scream as he sees the 209.34 for the total free skate score, then 303.55 for the combined, edging Hanyu out with a little more than two-and-a-half points and settling a shell-shocked Taemin into an overwhelming _ second place. _

“Oh, look at him, he can’t even believe it,” Jinki cries as he brings Jongin in for a tight embrace, then all the breath whooshes out of their lungs as Minho piles on top of both of them with all the ferocity of Kyungsoo when he’s pissed off his rocker. 

“ _ Me _ ?” A disbelieving Taemin asks Kibum, who seems more excited than his student, stamping his feet and shouting in jubilation before dragging Taemin into a bear hug. 

“Oh,” Yixing’s head drops onto Baekhyun’s shoulder and he goes limp. 

“And that is rookie Lee Taemin for an  _ overwhelming  _ senior debut,” the commentator cries. The audience seems as shell-shocked as Taemin, who’s gaping mouth covered by his hands shows on the Jumbotron. Slowly, the crowd roars to life like the fans of a jet plane as they process the upset that just happened. Taemin’s jubilated fans scream their approval and wave South Korea’s flag in a state of uproar. The noise they make  _ almost _ manages to drown out the angry shouts of Hanyu’s dedicated home fanbase, which fills the majority of the stadium. Taemin pays them no mind, simply blowing a kiss to his Taemints and bowing once more in heartfelt gratitude before hurriedly being ushered out of frame by Kibum. In the midst of all the chaos, the commentary continues. “Forcing the spotlight onto himself with an unignorable performance, Lee jumped out of  _ nowhere-- _ dark horse--nobody expected--” 

“He didn’t force anything on himself,” Minho spits at the commentary, “YOU did, putting all that pressure on him. He was  _ terrified.  _ He didn’t eat, didn’t rest, just to prove himself--” 

“He did it, Minho-hyung, he did it. It’s okay now,” Jongin reaches up and around a tangle of limbs to pat Minho’s back soothingly. 

“Lee Taemin,  _ remember _ the name, Hayoon-ssi. What a way to debut, edging out Hanyu with a season’s best that’s nearly  _ thirty  _ points higher than his previous score at Nationals. It’s almost unheard of. He pulled out all the stops tonight, delivered everything he had to climb up onto that podium.”

“ _ Hell _ yeah. We weren’t leaving without gold or silver, baby,” Sehun plants a kiss square on Junmyeon’s lips in his excitement.

“That was his answer,” Jinki calms down first, gently releasing Jongin from his death grip and pushing Minho off of himself. “His answer to the Federation’s gamble.” 

“It pay off,” Yixing murmurs with his lips against Baekhyun’s sweatshirt. “All that work.” Baekhyun squeaks desperately as Yixing’s knee brushes up against his crotch and Yixing suddenly flinches back as if he’s been doused in cold water, realizing with a jolt how closely intertwined they’ve gotten because of Yixing’s trepidation. “Oh my gosh, sorry, sorry--” 

“No, I’m sorry,” Baekhyun splutters in embarrassment, “I couldn’t help it… y-you were warm and I--” 

“My fault,” Yixing murmurs, letting his hands drop to his own lap and wrings them tightly together. “Should not have been so close to you.” 

“No! I-it was nice,” Baekhyun feels his face heat up. “It’s okay. You were nervous. I--I didn’t mind it. I mean, I’m sorry for getting--you know--but I like… I liked--” At this, Yixing glances up and meets Baekhyun’s gaze shyly. 

“Yeah?” 

“Yeah,” Baekhyun whispers, losing himself in Yixing’s coffee-colored eyes, which swirl with a whirlwind of emotions. Tenderness, concern, suppressed longing. Baekhyun slowly reaches for Yixing’s hand again in a bout of bravery and the elder lets him, placing his sweaty palm flush against Baekhyun’s. Chanyeol coughs suddenly and Baekhyun tears his gaze away to find the occupants of the sofa staring at them, suppressing teasing smiles. 

“--celebration when he gets back, do you want to come, Baekkie?” Jongin looks expectantly to Baekhyun, who wrenches the last of his brain cells back together to begin contextual analysis. 

“Huh?” is his incredibly witty response. Jongin cackles. 

“You’re so whipped,” Jongin teases gleefully in an unbelievably good mood because of Taemin’s groundbreaking performance. “Goddamn.” And Baekhyun can’t even argue.

\--

“Make way, make way,” Jonghyun announces as he accompanies a bright-eyed Taemin back into their home rink a few days later. The elder’s got a hand up to an imaginary in-ear and a protective arm shielding Taemin as if he’s some sort of bodyguard for the new World silver medalist. “Lee Taemin coming through, please don’t push--” He grapples onto Minho as he comes flying into the lobby of the rink to crush Taemin in a hug. “Sir, I’m going to have to call security on you,” Jonghyun’s laughs escape through his serious facade as he wrestles Minho away from a thoroughly amused Taemin. Jongin hovers anxiously as well, wanting to join in the fun and approach an unprotected Taemin while Jonghyun’s still involved in his tussle, but not sure how his sunbae would react. Taemin smiles though, and motions for Jongin to come up around the pair. 

“You can’t do that!” Jonghyun growls over Minho’s shoulder as Jongin very carefully wraps his arms around Taemin and squeezes lightly. Jongin can only offer a small smug smile as Taemin embraces him as well. 

“Congratulations, sunbae,” Jongin murmurs into the collar of a worn Team SK jacket. “You did so well.” 

“Thank you, Nini.” Jongin makes to let go, but Taemin doesn’t seem to mind, so Jongin resolutely holds onto the embrace, head swimming with the faint, comforting scent of Taemin’s shampoo.  _ He even smells good…  _ Jongin thinks dizzily. The laughter and yelps from Jonghyun and Minho fade into dull background noise while Taemin murmurs something about being excited for the celebration tonight. 

“D’you want to see it?” Taemin asks, jerking Jongin from his hazy cloud of pining. 

“I-if that’s okay…?” Jongin has no idea what he’s even agreeing to see, but Taemin is already pulling back from the embrace, much to Jongin’s dismay. He withdraws a large silver medal from his pocket and Jongin’s breath catches as Taemin places the medal around Jongin’s neck, smiling a little as he does so. 

“It’s heavy,” Jongin notes, surprised at how weighty the little medallion is. He gently lifts it up by the thick ribbon to examine the engraving and design of it. “Oh, wow…” 

“Hold up, last I heard, I thought Taemin brought home silver,” Minho finally extricates himself from Jonghyun and drapes an arm around Jongin, leaning around to see the medal as well. “Don’t tell me you went to Worlds as well?” At this, Jongin quickly shakes his head and takes the medal off from around his neck. It’s foreign to him. 

“Ah, this is really nice,” Minho murmurs. “I almost like this design better than last year.” 

“Mmmm,” Taemin hums noncommittally. “Hug, hyung.” Minho obeys, clapping Taemin on the back. Jongin’s left standing awkwardly with his fingers gripping onto the silk of the ribbon of a silver medal whose weight sits heavily in the palm of his hand. 

Practice is a fun affair; even Kyungsoo manages to smile a little as Jongin stumbles a little on the landing of a Quad Flip but manages to not fall down this time, instead stepping out of the landing. 

“That was close,” Kibum remarks when Jongin makes his way back to the sideboards for Kyungsoo’s critique. Jongin nods.

“It’s been getting better.” 

“Cheated landing,” Kyungsoo murmurs, gliding smoothly over to the general area where Jongin had landed and finding the marks in the ice from his toe pick. “You see this is the direction where you landed, and this is what you need.” Kyungsoo scratches his toe pick in the ice, indicating the half rotation that Jongin needs to fully rotate the Quad. “Harness today? I can give you a little bit of extra height. Then you can try a few more on your own.” Jongin sighs and nods assent. 

“Our little Worlds silver medalist,” Minho is leaning against the boards, sipping water and watching Taemin casually after Jongin finishes his lesson with Kyungsoo.  “Back at work as if nothing ever happened.” 

“He’s humble, it’s a good thing.” Jinki reaches over the side to grab a tissue. Jongin sidles up next to Jinki and places a cold hand against the back of his neck. “JONGIN--” 

“Please?” Jongin turns his puppy eyes on until Jinki sighs and wraps his own warm hands around Jongin’s. 

“Why don’t you ask anybody else to warm you up?” Jinki grumbles as Jongin’s other hand slyly makes its way to Jinki’s neck again, making him arch back in frustration. “ _ Patience.”  _ Jongin draws back immediately, fearful of a forehead flick. 

“Cause I like you,” Jongin offers, batting his eyelashes up at Jinki, who snorts. 

“Not Mr. Lutz-Loop?” Jongin’s heart skips a beat at this. The next time he looks up at his elder, Jinki has a knowing look on his face. Jongin’s brows furrow together in dismay. 

“No,” Jongin protests weakly. “Besides, he’s busy.” Jongin shuffles his skates a little and gives Jinki his other hand when prompted. Jinki only hums a little. 

“Whatever you say, Nini.” 

\--

“I have an idea,” Sehun announces in the locker room after a boisterous practice. 

“That’s never a good thing.” Jinki tosses his towel to Minho, who’d somehow lost his. “What is it?” 

“Instead of going over to Jongin’s for the celebration, let’s just go out.” 

“Go out where?” Yixing inquires. 

“Clubbing. Or dinner. Anywhere with a bar and tteokbokki.” Sehun spreads his hands dramatically. “Am I a genius?” 

“Taeminnie?” Jonghyun looks over to Taemin. “What do you wanna do? It’s your party.” 

“Anything,” Taemin shrugs. “Whatever you all want, don’t worry about me. It might be less of a hassle for Nini and his roommates if we go out…?” 

“Don’t worry,” Jongin tells his suitcase. “Cleanup and everything isn’t a problem when there’s three of us.” 

“At least look at him when you’re saying things,” Jinki’s laugh is lighthearted, but it’s still a reprimand. “Don’t be shy.” 

“Sorry, sunbae,” Jongin meets Taemin’s warm eyes for just a second. He has to fight the urge to look back down. “A-anything you like is fine.” At this, Taemin’s lips curl up into a delicate smile. Or is it a smirk? Jongin can’t tell. 

“Sehunnie wants to go out, right?” Taemin inquires, swinging his gaze over to the youngest skater. Sehun nods. “Then let’s go out.” 

“You’re the best,” Sehun singsongs happily. 

\--

“Woah. Hey there, cutie.” Baekhyun scans Yixing up and down when he walks up to the small group clustered just outside the bar. “You look good.” 

“You, too,” Yixing offers, blushing just a little at the reappearance of flirty Baekhyun. “Look nice.” 

“Twirl for me?” Baekhyun asks, popping his hip out just a little and smirking coyly up at Yixing. “Lemme see it  _ all. _ ” Yixing obeys, executing a graceful turn so that Baekhyun can take in his backside as well. “Cuutee. Just wanted to see if you’d obey.” Baekhyun winks as Yixing stutters, then turns away with a nice whirl of his own to rejoin the rest of the skaters, making sure to saunter just a little so Yixing’s gaze can’t help but drop down to watch the ripped black denim of his jeans stretch against pretty thighs and ass. For all the time Baekhyun spends pent up in front of a monitor and sitting down in a chair, he sports quite the goodies. Yixing is sold. 

\--

“Chanyeollie,” Jongin whispers, clutching onto his giant of a friend next to him on the car stool helplessly. “Look at him.” 

“Who? Taemin?” Chanyeol’s gaze slides across the darkened room to where Taemin sits in a corner booth, giggling about something that Jonghyun says to him. “Go join him, there’s plenty of room.” 

“Isn’t he cute?” Jongin asks dreamily, tipping his head onto Chanyeol’s shoulder. “He’s  _ gorgeousss.”  _

“You’re already tipsy?” Chanyeol sighs. “Figures.” 

“Only a little.” Jongin rights himself again and giggles. “But he’s cute, right?” 

“Mmm,” Chanyeol acquiesces obediently. “Your type. Go for it.” 

“Can’t,” Jongin sobers and leans his elbow on the bar table, cupping a cheek with his palm. 

“Why not? Just shoot your shot, Nini.” 

“Tell you a secret,” Jongin’s eyes dart around as if anyone would be listening to their conversation, then pulls Chanyeol in by the collar of his flannel shirt. “He just became a  _ legend. _ ” 

“What?” 

“He’s a  _ god.”  _ Jongin releases Chanyeol. “He’s wayyyy out of my league. I can’t even talk to him anymore. GG,” Jongin sighs. “It’s over. Nice knowing him.” 

Chanyeol chuckles. “You hang out with Baek too much. And you’ve always been a little dramatic once you’ve had enough to drink.” 

“S’not being dramatic. I can’t even look him in the eye. He’s allllll the way up there,” Jongin stretches his hand up to the ceiling as far as he can reach, “and I’m allllllll the way down here.” Jongin points to the ground. “How can I even think about it?” At this, he sighs deeply and sips on his drink some more. “Chanyeollie, why couldn’t I have fallen for someone normal?” 

“Normal’s no fun,” Chanyeol’s answer is even. “And it’s also subjective.” Jongin pouts a little as he considers this, but before he can reply, there’s an arm around both of their waists. 

“Whatcha talkin about?” Jongdae joins the trio. “Got room for me?” Chanyeol motions to the chair next to him. “Who’s cute?” Jongdae demands. 

“Baekhyun,” Jongin slurs. 

“ _ What _ ?” Chanyeol gives him an incredulous look. 

“With Yixing.” 

“Ohhhh.” The three of them turn to find Baekhyun leaning across a table all up in Yixing’s face, smirking whenever the skater blushes furiously at something he says. “Yeah, they’re pretty cute,” Jongdae concedes. “Dunno how it happened, but s’cute. But I meant for  _ me,”  _ Jongdae insists. “I’m lonely and horny.” 

“Do you like skater boys?” Chanyeol asks suddenly. Jongin giggles and slaps Chanyeol on the arm. 

“They’re not off limits.” Jongdae smiles kittenishly.

“Then Taemin,” Chanyeol gestures to the booth that Jongin had been ogling seconds earlier. 

“Oop--true. He’s cute. But Nini likes him.” 

“I don’t like him,” Jongin’s self-defense is instinctual.

“Keep telling yourself that, and I’m gonna go say hi.” Jongdae gets up from the bar to leave. “You’re just gonna let me?” Jongdae raises a knowing eyebrow as Jongin looks on helplessly. “I’m going, Nini. I’m gonna go ask him for his number…” Jongin’s stomach drops out from under him and Chanyeol shoves him off the bar stool. 

“You’re being ridiculous, Nini. Go get him.” 

“Don’t,” Jongin pleads, catching up to Jongdae who’s striding across the room. “Don’t, please.” 

“Then go talk to him.” Jongdae’s expression is soft and playful. “Go go go, before I do it first.” 

“Dae,” Jongin protests, gripping Jongdae’s shoulder to prevent him from walking. “I can’t.” 

“Why not? Just go  _ talk  _ to him, you’re all teammates,” Jongdae shoves back despite being so much smaller and weaker than Jongin. “He probably wants to talk to you as well. It’s his big celebration, don’t you think you should go wish him congratulations?” 

“He doesn’t wanna talk,” Jongin says miserably. “He’s too good for me.” 

“Bullshit.” Jongdae ducks under Jongin’s arm and plops down on the seat across the booth from where Taemin and Jonghyun are sitting. Both of them look up in surprise to Jongdae first, then Jongin, who sulkily approaches the table, throwing a reproachful look at his roommate, who looks positively pleased with himself. 

“Well, now that he’s here, I’ll be going!” Jongdae chirps, leaving as quickly as he’d arrived. Jongin turns around to follow Jongdae, but there’s a hand grasping at the folds of his shirt. 

“He made it sound like you were going to stay,” Taemin offers a brilliant smile from around Jonghyun. “Surely you weren’t going to leave as well?” 

“I--” Jongin helplessly slides into Jongdae’s vacated seat. “Congratulations.” 

“Is that all you wanted to say?” Taemin looks more and more amused by the minute. “I don’t bite.” 

“Only on Tuesdays,” Jonghyun offers and Taemin readily agrees. 

“Why Tuesdays?” 

“Because I have triple lessons that day. Ki-Soo-Seok.” Taemin huffs out a laugh. “Are you having fun, Nini?” 

“I should be asking you that,” Jongin fidgets. “It’s your celebration.” 

“Yes, but that doesn’t mean everyone else doesn’t get to have fun. Speaking of which, where is everyone?” Taemin cranes his head to glance out of the booth. “I haven’t moved since we got here, so I don’t know…” 

“Jinki-hyung and Minho said they’ll be back in a sec,” Jonghyun offers. “No idea where they went.” 

“I was at the bar with Dae and Yeol. And there’s Xing-hyung with Baekkie.” Jongin nods to their table. “Oh, and Sehun’s probably in the bathroom with Junmyeon or something.” 

“Probably. You were drinking?” Taemin inquires. 

“A little.” Jongin relaxes a bit as he takes in the atmosphere and Taemin’s warm welcome. “Last time I got tipsy was at Nationals. I think Jinki-hyung carried me back to my hotel room that night.” 

Taemin looks like he’s trying to stifle a laugh. “That was me.” Jongin groans and drops his head into his arms. 

“That was you…?” Jongin asks the polished wood of the table faintly. “Fuck me,” he whispers.

“Hmm? You good, Nini?” That’s not Taemin. Jongin peeks up and to the left as Jinki shoves him further into the curved booth to make room for him and Minho. 

“Where’d you go?” Jongin looks up. 

“To procure  _ presents _ !” Jinki sets down a huge tray of tteokbokki. “Junmyeon and Sehun put it on their bill, bless those two.” 

“They bought me tteokbokki?” Taemin bursts into laughter and it washes over Jongin like a wave. Taemin-sunbae’s laugh is just as cute as he is, and in some devilish part of Jongin’s compromised brain, his mouth opens to tell Taemin that. 

“Sunbae, your laugh is cute.” Then he promptly falls back into his arms, face burning with embarrassment because  _ what the fuck?  _ But Taemin only laughs harder at this and even reaches over to ruffle Jongin’s hair. 

“If you say so, Nini.” 

“A person’s laugh is cute only if the person is also cute,” Jinki supplies. Jonghyun reaches over to poke one of Taemin’s cheeks, the lucky man he is. Jongin has never wanted to be Jonghyun this badly. 

“Ah, don’t.” Taemin bats Jonghyun’s hand away. “Eat, guys.” 

“Is it spicy?” Jongin eyes the plate. 

“As hell.” 

\--

“Hunnie, let’s go,” Junmyeon croons to a drunk Sehun, who giggles and wraps his long arms around his boyfriend. 

“Wherewegoing?” Sehun leans in for a sloppy kiss and Junmyeon indulges before pulling back. 

“Let’s go take a group picture with your teammates. C’mon.” 

“What about us?” Sehun asks as Junmyeon pushes him across the darkened bar and out the door. 

“What do you mean?” 

“I want you,” Sehun turns around and pushes Junmyeon up against the hard, cold brick of the building. “Can’t wait.” 

“You’re gonna have to.” Junmyeon smiles and presses a kiss to Sehun’s hungry lips just to keep him curious. “I’ll take you back to my place tonight, okay?” 

“Now,” Sehun insists petulantly. Junmyeon shakes his head firmly. 

“No, right now you’re very drunk and being very rude. Let’s go catch up with them.” When they do, Jongin’s directing everyone into position under the light of a streetlamp. 

“Sunbae, scoot in closer to Minho-hyung.” 

“That spot is for you,” Taemin smiles. “Oh, Sehunnie’s here.” 

“Go on.” Junmyeon shoves Sehun into Chanyeol’s grip. “I’ll take the picture, Jongin.” 

“Are you sure?” Jongin looks uncertain. “I can just ask someone--” 

“Oh, please.” Junmyeon holds his hand out for the phone. “It’s not like you can be left out of it.” 

Jongin hesitates for just a moment before wrapping his arm around Minho and gently encircling Taemin’s waist. Junmyeon counts down from three, then snaps a few pictures. “Just Ki-gang?” Junmyeon suggests. 

“Of course! We get one every year.” Jinki shoos everyone out of frame, then pulls the remaining five of them closer together. “Sehun, look at the camera, please.” 

“Look at me,” Junmyeon’s voice calls, chuckling slightly as Sehun focuses on him immediately. “Geez.” 

“Better get him home before it gets too late,” Taemin suggests after the picture is taken. “Do you need a ride, or-- _ oof!”  _

“Group hug for Taeminnie!” Minho calls, piled on top of Taemin already. “Our little silver medalist, making us all so proud.” Taemin’s promptly buried until a mass of bodies, each in varying degrees of soberness. It’s messy and chaotic and freezing, but most of all, it’s precious, and Jongin’s heart fills with affection at being surrounded by so many of his friends and teammates. That is, until he realizes he’s pressed right up against Taemin because Minho had managed to sandwich him in between Taemin and himself when he went in for the hug in the first place, and suddenly his affection dissolves into minor panic and a hint of euphoria because  _ sunbae smells so good, he’s so cute when he’s laughing, he’s so warm, please don’t let go, oh god, what if I crush him-- _

“Can’t. Breathe,” Jongin croaks out, and Taemin giggles under him. 

“Me neither. Thank you guys for celebrating with me,” Taemin calls as they break apart with gasps of laughter. “It was a perfect way to end the season.” 

“Next year will be even more amazing,” Jinki promises, gathering everyone up again. “We’ll do even better.” 

“And we can go to Worlds  _ together,”  _ Minho emphasizes. “Thanks to you.” He ruffles Taemin’s hair and smiles proudly. 

“Sunbae,” Jongin manages. “Did you know your Lutz-Loop is going viral?” 

“Hmm? No, I didn’t.” Taemin looks genuinely interested. “Is it really?” 

“They’re saying it should be your signature jump. Taemints, I mean.” Jongin sighs quietly. 

“How about you? What do you think?” Jongin looks at him in surprise, unsure of what to say. Is he flirting? Asking a teammate for an opinion? Why is it so hard to tell what Taemin’s thinking? Jongin so desperately wants to know. 

“You should definitely put it in your program next year, sunbae. That combination is insane. It’ll blow your score up, especially if you train it.” 

“I’ll talk about it with Coach Kibum on Monday,” Taemin assures him. “Did you have fun?” 

“Yeah,” Jongin’s a little breathless. “Lots of fun.” 

“S’good.” A loud whoops comes from behind them and they both turn around to find Jongdae teasing the hell out of Baekhyun. 

“You’re going home with him?” Jongdae crows, and Yixing draws Baekhyun closer to him, keeping one hand tightly interlaced with Baekhyun’s at all times. 

“I just walk him home,” Yixing murmurs, although his cheeks are tinged pink. “He said he live not far from here, but still…” 

“You don’t have to,” Baekhyun manages. All semblance of his sauciness is gone now that Yixing’s got him pressed to his chest protectively and his hand is looped in the skater’s. “I-I can.” 

“Want to make sure you get home safe.” Yixing waves his good-byes to the group. “Bye. I see you guys on Monday.” 

“Use protection!” Jongdae calls out before leaning against Chanyeol and turning around to find Jongin and Taemin standing very, very close together. “Oh? You’re not coming home tonight?” 

“I am!” Jongin steps away from Taemin quickly. “I’ll see you Monday, sunbae.” 

“Sure.” Taemin pays no attention to Jongdae’s teasing and twiddles his fingers. “Thank you for coming out tonight.” 

“Of course.” 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> As repentance I offer you all this very fluffy wholesome chapter that generally serves zero purpose except to quell my self-indulgences. I love BaekXing with my entire heart. Seho, too. And TaeKai goes without saying. You know who else I love?  
> You~  
> Sorry  
> I leave now  
> Bye <3  
> S/O Arane for everything she does for my tired little soul, what a woman... <333


	9. Chapter 9

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm back!!! Thank you guys for waiting so patiently ;-; hope you enjoy the new update!

Baekhyun smothers his laughter in the sleeve of his jacket as he ducks around the corner of the small streetfront coffee shop that he and Yixing had agreed to meet at. According to his latest text, the skater should be there any moment now. When Yixing arrives, he glances up and down the empty street worriedly, then immediately reaches for his phone. Baekhyun feels his text vibrate in his back pocket, but doesn’t react, pressing himself against the brick wall and chancing a look around the corner to watch Yixing walk inside the shop and back out again. Baekhyun’s phone buzzes again. 

[Yixing]

Where are you?

Baekhyun purposely leaves him on read. Peeking out at Yixing again, the skater is leaning against the wall now, looking up and around expectantly every few seconds. He looks so good with his hair combed up and off his forehead that Baekhyun allows himself a moment of thirsty admiration. After a few minutes of waiting, Yixing’s face is starting to show a mixture of emotions. Worry, sadness, uncertainty. Baekhyun creeps out from around the corner when Yixing begins to walk away from the store, pressing his phone up to his ear as he does so. He runs up behind him ever so quietly, ignoring the incoming call, and digs his fingers into Yixing’s sides, causing him to yelp and let out a few choice words in Mandarin. 

“Baekhyun-ssi.” Relief fills Yixing’s eyes when he catches his breath and turns around to meet Baekhyun’s sly smile. “You scared me.” 

“I watched you pace up and down the street for ten minutes,” Baekhyun crows gleefully, nudging Yixing’s arm playfully. “You were really worried, weren’t you?” 

“Where were you?” 

“I was just around the corner,” Baekhyun smirks, leans in closer. “Happy April Fools Day,” Baekhyun purrs. “I got you good.” 

“Hmm,” is all Yixing says, looking more than a little flustered as Baekhyun winks. “So I am a joke to you?” 

“What?” Baekhyun’s thrown off guard. “No--” A pair of firm hands land on either of his shoulders and start marching him back towards the wall. Baekhyun squeaks when his back hits brick and then promptly loses his train of thought when Yixing plants a hand right next to his ear and leans in. 

“Am I a joke, Baekhyun-ssi?” Baekhyun stutters, then flinches when Yixing’s hand dips underneath his chin and lifts it up to meet Yixing’s mischievous gaze. “Am I fun to play with?” 

“Uhhh’nnNN--” 

“Yes? No?” Yixing crowds him up against the wall and Baekhyun doesn’t know whether to press back against the unyielding building or curl into Yixing’s warm body. 

“No?” He manages to squeak out. His entire world spins with the sweet smell of oranges and fresh cotton, and his vision is filled with soft black hair and a pair of plump, pink lips. The ones that pressed up warmly against his own a few days ago just outside of his apartment. 

~

“ _ I live here,” Baekhyun motions to the nondescript apartment building just ahead of them. Yixing nods, but doesn’t let go of his hand to let him go inside. Baekhyun is reluctant to leave as well; he turns to face Yixing, suddenly very unsure of his next move.  _

_ “Er, thanks for walking me home.“  _

_ “No problem,” Yixing says quietly, letting their intertwined hands drop. He seems to be struggling with himself and Baekhyun silently urges him on. _ **_Do it, do it_ ** _ … After another minute, Baekhyun slowly turns away to go inside, and that’s when Yixing comes to his decision, reaching out to grab his wrist and pulling Baekhyun back to his side.  _

_ “C-can I kiss you goodnight?” Baekhyun’s heart soars as he nods and Yixing drops his hand to pull Baekhyun closer to him.  _

_ Will this ever grow old, Baekhyun wonders, limply letting the gentle hand on the small of his back press him tight against Yixing’s steady chest. The answer is no. He knows he’ll never tire of having his lips locked with Yixing’s, who is currently flicking at Baekhyun’s lower lip. Baekhyun can only feel his way blindly through the relatively new sensations, parting his lips because that’s what feels right in the moment. Yixing takes advantage of his position and steals into his mouth to leave sparks and traces of his taste all over Baekhyun, who’s very turned on and very helpless. He clings onto Yixing’s jacket, shivering from the cold air and from the feelings that are ignited in his chest and groin from the kiss. When Yixing pulls away to catch his breath, Baekhyun misses him immediately, just barely quelling a whimper.  _

_ “Good night,” Yixing whispers, cupping his face in the palm of his warm, calloused hand and looking at him like he’s the most precious thing that he’s ever held. Baekhyun can only nod, speechless for once in his life. “Baekhyun-ssi…” Yixing begins slowly. The poor boy looks so nervous; Baekhyun wants to kiss him again but doesn’t know how to initiate. “I--I think I like you,” Yixing confesses shyly, and at this Baekhyun feels like he’ll explode. _

_ “Will you… do you, uhm…” Yixing stutters and trips over his own tongue. Baekhyun finds it completely, utterly, absolutely adorable.  _

_ “Are you asking me on a date _ **_,_ ** _ sweetheart?” Baekhyun’s back to being a total flirt and Yixing goes pink.  _

_ “I-if that is OK with you?“  _

_ Baekhyun winks. “I’d  _ **_love_ ** _ to.”  _

_ ~  _

Yixing pulls away from a now-flustered Baekhyun and reaches out for his hand as if it’s the most natural thing in the world. And since Baekhyun short-circuits every time Yixing touches him, he allows himself to be led along the sidewalk, feeling tingles of electricity spike whenever Yixing’s thumb rubs across his knuckles. If he were in a better state of mind, he would’ve kicked himself for how he has been reduced to a pile of blue balls and fanfiction-trope cliches by a singular (1) man. He just experienced a whole year’s worth of emotions in less than thirty minutes and he still has a whole afternoon to spend with Yixing. Baekhyun mutters something under his breath about being too young to die, and Yixing turns to look at him with that adorable dimple settling into his cheek as soon as their eyes meet. 

“What?”

“You look hot today,” Baekhyun blurts, then claps his free hand over his mouth. Yixing flushes redder than Baekhyun. 

“Thank you.” An awkward silence falls between the two of them. Baekhyun’s hands feel clammy and sweaty, but Yixing isn’t letting go. The easy banter and flirting exchanges that had been passed between the two of them from the past two weeks now seem very, very distant to Baekhyun. How does one go about a date? Are there rules to follow? What is there to talk about other than item and rune builds? Baekhyun has never felt more socially inept. 

“Here,” Yixing murmurs after a few unyielding minutes of silent walking and hand-holding. Baekhyun glances at the familiar neon green sign. He’s been to this one way more than just a few a dozen times. 

“Wait,” Baekhyun cautions as Yixing reaches for the door handle. He tugs his sweatshirt hoodie low over his head. “People will definitely recognize me in an internet cafe,” he explains. “And I usually don’t mind, but I want to spend today with you alone.” At this, Yixing’s dimple deepens even more than before and he reaches into his back pocket for a face mask.

“Ah, wait, that’s not necessary,” Baekhyun protests, but his argument dies off weakly when Yixing gently tugs the plastic covering off. Baekhyun reaches out for the mask, but Yixing’s eyes sparkle as he loops the strings around Baekhyun’s ears and carefully situates the mask over the lower half of his face. “Oh! Thanks.” The butterflies in Baekhyun’s stomach stir up a storm. 

“Hm.” Yixing smiles in self-satisfaction as he surveys Baekhyun, then reaches for the door. 

\--

Baekhyun flexes his fingers when the two of them are settled cozily in a booth in the far back of the internet cafe. As always, a surge of excitement courses through him. This is more his speed, and it shows--he visibly relaxes and flirts more openly with Yixing, who seems more than happy to watch Baekhyun set up a new smurf account and blush pink at all of Baekhyun’s comments. 

“Let’s go!” Baekhyun sends a friend request from his newly created level 1 account to Yixing, who suddenly seems nervous. “Don’t worry,” Baekhyun is all smiles. “I’ll help you, I’m not gonna make fun of you. Just relax.” 

“You are so much better,” Yixing mutters while they’re waiting in the queue for a normal game. 

“Well,  _ obviously,  _ but I promised to teach you. Don’t worry about it,” Baekhyun motions to his summoner name. “I’m not Kyoong today. I’m just your hot date.” Baekhyun winks, and Yixing’s dimple deepens. 

“Okay,” Yixing agrees. A game pops up on their screen; when they call roles, Baekhyun has to choose from the limited number of free-to-play champions available and they get into the game rather peacefully. Since Baekhyun’s account is new, he has no runes, inspiration, or advanced spells available to him and in addition to that none of his specialty characters are currently free-to-play. But just like a good skater knows that they don’t need the most technically difficult jumps to win, Baekhyun’s lack of level-based enhancements is hardly a problem for him. The opposing Yasuo barely poses a threat to Baekhyun, who’d opted to take Soraka mid as a troll move. It’s incredibly unsurprising when the seasoned player draws first blood. 

“Nice,” Yixing murmurs, concentrating on his camp of monsters inside the jungle that separates the top, mid, and bottom lanes of the map on which his four team mates are trying to damage the opposing team’s turrets while protecting their own. Baekhyun glances over at him when he goes back to base where he can buy items and recharge his health points and leaves his middle lane unattended. 

“If you walk a little more to the left there when you engage that camp, you will receive less hits. And save your ‘Smite’ spell for the next one,” Baekhyun instructs patiently. 

“Mhm,” Yixing’s face is furrowed in concentration. When he returns back to base to continue his build, Baekhyun checks in on him again. 

“No, don’t buy that, in this situation and with the composition of the opposing team I’d rather you buy…” Yixing listens carefully as Baekhyun gives him a rundown of the advantages and disadvantages of various item options given the current situation. “Did you understand? I know I talked really fast.” 

“Make sense,” Yixing murmurs. The two play in comfortable silence for a few more minutes, then Yixing huffs in frustration as his screen turns black and white.

“Just relax,” Baekhyun coos when Yixing dies in a bottom lane gank, where he had tried to help the attack-damage-carry (ADC) and support players to kill the opposing pair. “Not your fault the ADC doesn’t know how to engage. You did fine.” 

“I look so bad compare to you.” 

“Hey.” Baekhyun doesn’t look away from the screen, but he injects a note of gentleness into his voice. “Put me on the ice and I’d be dying as well. I don’t know how to do a Triple Axel or any of your spinny things.” He falters when Yixing’s head gently tilts against his shoulder as he waits to resurrect, watching him play. “Wh-what was I saying? Yeah, so,” Baekhyun bites his lip, executing a quick combo that gets him another kill. Baekhyun chuckles. “So just have fun. I’m not going to laugh or flame you.” A sudden peck on the cheek makes him miss the last hit on a minion that would have earned him money to buy items, ruining his perfect creep score (CS). “Shit,” Baekhyun complains, but he doesn’t really mind, and even though Yixing murmurs an apology as he goes back to his own game, he’s secretly pleased with how he can make Baekhyun stumble with such a simple gesture of affection.

“C’mere,” Baekhyun directs a little while later. “Gank mid, I’ll give you an easy kill.” Yixing obeys. “Don’t let him get away, follow him,” Baekhyun urges. “You can tank a turret shot. Nice!” He reaches out to pat Yixing on the back. “Very nice. The more you play, the more game sense you get. And practice, of course.” 

“It is like that in skating, too,” Yixing says, consuming a health potion. “Like, in air, I can tell already if I going to land on feet or on ground. Because I am use to feeling.” 

“Ah, I can do that as well,” Baekhyun dismisses. “If I ever end up in the air, I know I’m gonna land on my ass.” Yixing laughs at this, and Baekhyun wishes he could bottle up the sound to hold onto it forever. “You’re gonna have to catch me,” Baekhyun continues, smirking at his computer screen and watching Yixing out of the corner of his eye. 

“We can be pairs skater,” Yixing laughs at just the thought. 

“Really? I’ll skate with you in Beijing 2022,” Baekhyun chuckles. “Whaddya say?” 

“I--I have to ask Coach Kibum.” Yixing looks flustered. 

“He’ll be fine with it. Take me skating one day,” Baekhyun asks, and Yixing nods wordlessly but enthusiastic. “Yeah? You can teach me.” 

“Teach you,” Yixing echoes. “You teach League, I teach you skating.” 

“Next time,” Baekhyun promises, and Yixing’s chest leaps at the thought of a next date. “After my matches.” 

“When is next one?” 

“April 7th. Today was the only day I could manage to get off of training. We play second to last in the bracket, so there’s probably gonna be a lot of pent-up anticipation for us,” Baekhyun sighs, making his way to the Dragon. Yixing joins him. “Are you gonna cheer for me, Yixing-ssi?” 

“Y-yes,” Yixing stammers. “I always, um, always watch your game.” 

“That’s sweet of you,” Baekhyun smiles. “I appreciate that.” 

“How old are you?” Yixing inquires suddenly. 

“1997. You?” 

“Oh. I am 1996. So--so you call me… hyung?” Yixing looks to Baekhyun, unsure. “If you want?” 

“I’d rather call you mine,” the words are out of Baekhyun’s mouth before he can process them. He decides to let the comment hang in the air, focusing instead on going in for a two versus one and is effortlessly winning. He laughs out loud delightedly when they both die. “Too easy,” he crows. He glances to look at Yixing’s black and white screen. “Oh, you died?” 

“Mmm.” But the game is the last thing on Yixing’s mind right now. “Call… me… yours?” 

“A joke,” Baekhyun explains. “Just flirting with you--” 

“I thought I show you I am not a joke.” Yixing meets Baekhyun’s gaze with a small smirk, watching Baekhyun’s pupils dilate. 

“Oh--” Baekhyun turns back to the computer screen. “Oh, god, this game is a mess,” Baekhyun laughs helplessly. “Fuck, I don’t even know how to play with you looking at me like that.” 

“But we are going to win,” Yixing lets the subject drop for now. 

“Yup.” Baekhyun takes the inhibitor, giving them the advantage of stronger minions to aid them conquer the lane. “Hyung, watch me.” Yixing looks over even though he’s resurrected by now. “Before we take the Nexus…” Baekhyun laughs gleefully as all five members of the enemy team converge on him and walk right into their death and a pentakill for Baekhyun. “GG WP,” Baekhyun types into chat, finishing the game off with a flourish. Yixing leaves another kiss on his cheek and Baekhyun’s eyes flutter closed for the fraction of a second. 

“Thank you,” Baekhyun’s fingertips gently touch where Yixing’s lips were. “Hoo, boy, if I knew I’d get a kiss every time I won a game…” Baekhyun’s grin is enough to convey his excitement.  _ I’d win every time.  _

“I can,” Yixing offers quietly. “I-if you want.” 

“What, kiss me every time I win a game?” 

“If you win on 7th, I kiss you,” Yixing promises. 

“Oh, but  _ hyung, _ ” Baekhyun smirks. “I’m pretty sure I can get you to kiss me on the cheek even without winning a game. I’m gonna need something more.” 

“Like… like what?” Yixing is so, so hopeful. 

“Dunno,” Baekhyun waves a hand airily. His own heart is beating twice as fast now, but he still leans closer to the elder and pointedly ignores his brain-to-mouth filter. “Junmyeon told me skater boys are just as good at making out as they are with their skates. I’d love to test that theory out with you.” Yixing’s breath catches in his throat and Baekhyun sits back. “Wanna play again?”

\--

“Morning,” a chorus of voices greets Jongin when he walks into the locker room bright and early on Monday morning. Actually, it isn’t even bright yet, with the sky just beginning to lighten to a grey color. 

“G’morning,” Jongin stifles a yawn. “I still don’t understand why we can’t do afternoon sessions during the off season.” 

“Just think about it this way,” Minho swings his arms over his head. “You wake up, get practice over with, and then you have the rest of the day to yourself. Otherwise we’d just wake up super late and then end up being unproductive before and after practice.” 

“Mmm.” Jongin links his hands together behind his back and pulls to crack his back. “Ugh, I’m so tight.” 

“That’s what she said,” Sehun tosses from his corner. 

“Shuddup. Go run.” Jongin rolls his neck a few times and on the third time, his gaze meets Taemin’s. “Morning, sunbae.” 

“Good morning!” Taemin smiles. “How was your weekend?” 

“Peaceful. Yours?” 

“Likewise.” Jongin turns to Yixing. “Xing-hyung.” 

“Hmm?” 

“How was your date?” 

“You went on a date?” Taemin turns to Yixing. “With who?” 

“What’s this I hear about a date?” Sehun had one foot out of the locker room, but as soon as he hears Jongin’s inquiry, he clamors over to harass Yixing. “With who? Baekhyun?” When Yixing nods shyly, the locker room erupts into chaos and the volume becomes far too loud for 5:30am on a Monday morning. 

“Can we keep it a little quieter?” Jinki groans. “Congrats, Xing.” 

“Sooooo?” Sehun plops down right next to Yixing and shakes him playfully. “What base didya get to? What’d you guys do? Is he your boyfriend now?” 

“Too many question,” Yixing stammers, turning red. “I don’t know.” 

“Did you kiss him?” 

“Um,” Yixing ignores the question, jiggling his leg up and down. “We play League and had dinner. And then I walk him back to his apartment.” 

“Did he invite you inside?” Sehun pries, but Yixing’s lips are locked.

“We take slow,” Yixing murmurs, picking at the hem of his Team China jacket. “I am just happy spend time with him.” 

“That’s so, so so so so cute,” Jongin coos. “Yixing-hyung’s got himself a boyfriend nowww.” 

“Not boyfriend yet.” 

“YET,” Jongin emphasizes, smiling a little. “Yet.” 

\--

“He’s gotta put that thing in his program,” Jinki murmurs as a passing remark to Jongin when they both return to the wall for drinking water at the same time. Jongin nods, glancing across the ice to see Taemin land a flawless Quad Lutz-Triple Loop combination. “It’s incredible.” 

“It’s unique. Makes him stand out since nobody else can do it,” Jongin agrees. “It could become his trademark.” 

“Mmm.” Jinki skates off before they stand at the boards for too long. Jongin focuses on triple-triple jump combinations for a while, bowing to Minseok who appears sometime in the middle of practice. Minseok gives him a cheery wave before turning his attention to Taemin. Jongin eagerly watches out of the corner of his eye as Minseok makes his way to the music box and puts on the first piece of music for Taemin to improvise to. 

Taemin’s improvisation is always striking. He plays with the music, catching onto nuances and using up all the parts and pieces of a melody, even one that he doesn’t feel particularly connected to. Taemin is graceful and elegant, his movements flowing easily with the music whereas Jongin’s choreography and movements are precise, with powerful skating skills and sharp movements. The two have different styles of skating and Jongin’s perfectly happy with the way his skating developed, but he still finds himself standing off to the side, sneaking long peeks at Taemin in awe when the strings of a violin ring out through the ice rink and his sunbae begins his improvisation session. 

“What do you want to skate to?” Minseok asks Taemin after the first piece. “I want your input. Do you want something with lyrics, something classical or theatrical… just give me an idea of what to look for with music.” 

“I’m not looking for a music genre in particular,” Taemin skates back to the boards. “I’m looking for myself. Something with which I can play to artistic strengths as well as technical difficulty.” 

“Ah,” Minseok smiles. “I see what you’re doing.” 

“Yes.” Taemin nods. “I can’t be another skater that only does quads and doesn’t worry about the artistic side of skating at all. Last year we had to reuse the program because I was more focused on working with technique. So I want something that’ll bring out sides of me that I haven’t shown yet.” 

“You need something mature and poignant for a free skate,” Minseok muses. “And I think if you want to work on artistry, then I want you to skate to something completely out of the box for your short program.”

“I also wouldn’t mind using a piece that’s a little overused but putting a fresh spin on it,” Taemin offers. “To bring something new to the table with an old piece that the judges are used to seeing.”

“From a choreographer standpoint,” Minseok offers, “it’s not very often that I see skaters who are truly able to turn an overused piece into something new. Most of the time, skaters who believe themselves to have this perfectly crafted image aren’t all that special, even if that’s a little harsh.” 

“What about me?” Minseok chews on his bottom lip thoughtfully, scanning Taemin up and down with his eyes. 

“You would need a completely fresh and unique interpretation of the music to begin with. And then you’d have to turn it into choreography. It’s not that I don’t think it’s possible for you--you have the willpower and the skating skills to do so, but I don’t think it’s  _ necessary  _ for a non-Olympic, second senior year. Unless you want to, of course,” Minseok adds. “I wouldn’t stop you, then.” 

“I’ll dig around and see what I can find?” Taemin suggests. “And I’d be much obliged if you could, too.” 

“Sure thing.” Minseok smiles. “But I’m not letting you interpret Vivaldi or Carmen.” 

“No such intentions here.” Taemin raises his hands in a gesture of innocence. 

\--

“I saw you improvising today,” Jongin murmurs to Taemin when they’re packing their things up in the locker room after practice. 

“Yeah? What’d you think?” 

“I really liked it,” Jongin offers. “What was the music called?” 

“The violin one? That was Michael Nyman.” 

“Ahh.” Jongin braces his forearms on the wall and adjusts himself to stretch out the knot in his left calf. 

“I didn’t particularly love it. Thought it was okay.” Taemin shrugs. 

“Are you planning on choreographing your own programs this year, sunbae?” Jongin gives up on relying on body weight and instead fumbles around for a lacrosse ball in the corner of his suitcase. He plops himself down on the wooden bench and places the ball under the knot in his calf in order to loosen it up a little. 

“If Coach Kibum will let me, I’d like to.” Taemin smiles a little while he stretches on the adjacent bench. “Even if it’s just one program.”

“You have to put the Lutz-Loop in there, then,” Jongin insists. “There’s not a single man or woman in the world who does that combination in competition currently, I’ve looked it up. The fact that you landed it on a whim at Worlds is game-changing, sunbae.” Jongin falters a little, realizing he’s starting to sound a little obsessed, but Taemin doesn’t seem to mind. 

“I talked about it with Kibum today and got a scolding,” Taemin chuckles. “But if I get to choreograph, I know I’ll put the combination in. I like surprising people.” 

“That’s one hell of a surprise,” Jongin mutters under his breath, missing the question that Taemin asks. “What?” 

“What about you? Your programs for this year?”

“Oh, I--I’ll let Minseok choreograph mine,” Jongin shrugs. “And when I improvised a few weeks ago, I found some music that we might use for my short.” 

“So soon? I’m a little jealous,” Taemin teases. “You’ve already got one down.” 

“It’s not for sure,” Jongin is sheepish. “And choosing music and concepts can be pretty fun sometimes. At least it beats breaking in new skates every season…”

“Oh god, yeah.” Taemin groans at the thought alone of having to wear new, incredibly stiff skating boots until the padding finally molds to his feet. While the period of adjustment comes with lots of blisters and awkward practices where it doesn’t quite feel like his skates are an extension of his feet, Taemin welcomes the stiffness of the boot when quads are involved, because he needs as much ankle stability as possible to withstand the pressure of landing them. “I need to order new ones. Mine are super broken down now.” 

“What type of skates do you wear?” 

“Edea.” Taemin reaches into his bag and pulls out a skate. “I’ll probably get them again, I’ve worn Edea since I was little.” 

“Yours are falling apart,” Jongin laughs while watching Taemin inspect his skate. 

“Yeah, don’t you see me literally taping my skates back together before each practice?” Taemin chuckles as he pulls out his giant roll of black duct tape. 

“Your blades,” Jongin glances at the eccentric pattern, and recognizes them in a heartbeat. “Aren’t those Gold Seal Revolutions?” 

“Yes,” Taemin thumbs along the blade to check its sharpness. “I find them really helpful for combinations and spinning because the width at the back of the blade is thinner than the front so it’s really easy to get momentum. And of course, Edeas with Gold Seal Revolutions is probably the most lightweight skate-blade combo you can find on the market.”

“Hanyu wears the same combination,” Jongin remembers. 

“He does. Lots of top skaters have switched to Gold Seal Revolutions these days. What do you wear?” Taemin inquires. 

“Oh--I also wear Edea but I use Pattern 99 blades.” 

“ _ Really? _ ” Taemin looks interested. “Who else uses Pattern 99?” 

“Shoma Uno does,” Jongin supplies. “I know Gold Seal is the major preference, but I’ve always just liked the way these feel and I never bothered switching. I don’t think I will for my next pair either,” Jongin says fondly. 

“Yours are heavy,” Taemin remarks, comparatively weighing both their skates in each hand. 

“I don’t have that carbon-graphite base that you do,” Jongin points out. “So mine are heavier. Plus the cut of the toe pick is different.” 

“You could get Pattern 99 Revolutions to make your blades lighter.” Taemin passes the skate back to Jongin. “I don’t think you’d feel much of a difference. And you know as well as I do that a little bit of weight is still a big deal.” 

“I’ll consider it,” Jongin squeezes the top of his boot, feeling how easy the leather gives. “Yeah, mine are totally broken down as well.” 

“Better break the new ones in early during the off season,” Taemin finishes stretching and stands up. Jongin mirrors his movements. “Those blisters are never any fun.” 

“Nope,” Jongin agrees, following Taemin out of the locker room. 

\--

“You look happy today,” Chanyeol remarks after dinner. Jongin leans against his roommates’ shoulder, lazily watching some movie. It’s just the two of them tonight, since Jongdae’s off on a mission to get laid. 

“Taemin-sunbae and I talked a lot after practice,” Jongin eagerly shares. “And it put me in a good mood because he seemed like he wanted to talk to me, too.” 

“Uh huh. What’d you talk about?” 

“Program music and new skates.” Chanyeol tries to suppress his laughter, but Jongin’s head comes off of his shoulder when he feels Chanyeol shaking. “What?” 

“That’s a sexy topic.” 

“Stop laughing!” Jongin is indignant while Chanyeol allows his amusement to bubble over. “It was really nice, okay?” 

“Okay,” Chanyeol agrees, leaning back against the cushions again to give Jongin a headrest again. “But that doesn’t make you any less whipped.” 

“Stoooppp.” 

“Don’t deny it.” But Chanyeol ruffles Jongin’s hair affectionately. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you so much for waiting everyone! I'm really, *really* happy to be back and writing again :D Aranee and I had a ton of fun writing this chapter (she wrote a lot of the LoL scene, applause please *clapclapclapclapclap*) so we hope you liked it!!! I'm hoping to update more regularly now that my schedule is clear for the next few months! Love you all <3 Thank you for the continued support!


	10. Chapter 10

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> TW: Excessive making out in this chapter.

“CLOSE YOUR LEGS!” Kibum screams across the ice as Sehun lands a Triple Flip. Minho flails wildly, grabbing Jinki’s shoulder for support as the two break into hysterical laughter when Kibum’s comment rings throughout the whole rink. “There are NO thigh gaps in figure skating!” Even Taemin exchanges a suppressed, thoroughly amused smile with Jongin when they skate past each other. 

“My air position is already tight,” Sehun complains, gliding back to the boards where Kibum perches. 

“Not enough.” Kibum hops down from his seated position atop the boards and slows down the slow-motion video he took of the jump. “Right… here. Perfect angle.” Sehun smirks at his coaches words and Kibum slaps him on the arm impatiently. “Brat. Pay _attention._ Look at all that space between your legs.” 

“But it’s rotated clean,” Sehun points out, reaching out to scroll past the frames and show Kibum the point at which his foot touches the ice, having fully rotated all three revolutions in the air. 

“I want you to focus on making this a better jump, I’m fully aware it’s clean. Execution doesn’t equal mastery. This--” Kibum demonstrates now, hunching over and awkwardly keeping his legs crossed at the ankles but not letting his knees or lower thighs touch, “is not an acceptable air position. It does not get you bullets. Taemin!” Kibum barks at the closest skater and Taemin skates past him before registering Kibum’s voice. 

“Oh--Yes?” He promptly comes to a halt. 

“Demonstrate a Triple Flip for me, please. With arms up over your head to emphasize the rotation position.” 

“Okay.” 

“Look at that,” Kibum murmurs to Sehun, whose eyes follow Taemin interestedly. “Nice and easy, good skating into the Flip. If you need a good example, go ask any of your hyungs. Look, he picks--UP!--and immediately pulls tight. See? You gotta squeeze your butt and engage your core.” 

“Yes, Coach-nim.” 

“Again.” Kibum orders, waving him off. “This time arms over your head.” 

“But _coachhh_ , that’s so difficult for me--” 

“GO!” 

\--

Yixing tugs a glove off with his teeth and checks his text messages when he gets off the ice, but to no avail. It wasn’t as if he had expected something, but his heart still sinks slightly in disappointment. He’s so busy trying to sort out the myriad of thoughts floating around in his head that he doesn’t even notice when he bumps into someone. 

“Oh--” Yixing hurriedly steps back. “So sorry, Jonghyun-hyung.” 

“Don’t worry about it,” Jonghyun waves away the small bow and apology, instead holding his hand out for a high-five. “How was practice?” 

“Okay,” Yixing says, falling in step next to the elder. He likes Jonghyun a lot; upon his arrival to Korea a couple years ago, he was one of the first people to befriend him and show him around the city. It was Jonghyun who had helped him with his Korean proficiency and bought him countless dinners because Yixing didn’t know how to order with what little vocabulary he knew. “Are you here for Taemin?” he inquires. Jonghyun nods, shoving his hands into his pockets. 

“Yep. But I was gonna talk to you, too--what’s this I hear about you and Baekhyun? Why didn’t you tell me?” Jonghyun teases, nudging Yixing’s side. At the mention of the gamer, Yixing’s brows furrow together and he smiles in spite of himself. “Look at you, all head over heels,” Jonghyun laughs, delighting in Yixing’s flustered expression. 

“Who tell you?” 

“Taeminnie, of course. He said you two went on a date last week? How was that?” 

“Fun,” Yixing murmurs. 

“I bet. Have you seen him since?” Yixing sobers a little when he shakes his head no. 

“He busy with LCK. Stream and train a lot, so I cannot see him. I mean--” Yixing chews his lip in thought, trying to arrange the sentence in his head before saying it out loud. Jonghyun waits patiently. “I see him when I watch stream, but not… not…” 

“Not in person,” Jonghyun supplies, and Yixing nods. “And you’re busy too.” 

“Yes. So much training even though off season.”

“So I’ve heard from Taemin as well. I hope you get to see him soon, though,” Jonghyun reaches for the locker room door. “Seems like you two are doing well.” 

“Yes.” Yixing nods his thanks to Jonghyun for holding open the door and promptly stops in his tracks when he sees Sehun tackling Minho on the bench. “Uhh--”

“Oh, wow.” Jonghyun peeks in from around the door.

“Close your legs,” Minho tells the younger who isn’t so much picking a fight as much as trying to turn a headlock into a cuddle. Jinki dissolves into laughter, clapping his hands helplessly. “Don’t be such a hoe, Sehunnie.” Minho chuckles and releases Sehun, who chooses to butt his head into Minho’s toned arms. Minho lets him, affectionately ruffling Sehun’s wind-tousled hair. 

“Sehun, you’re gonna break an ankle walking around with un-tied skates,” Jonghyun calls as a way of greeting, walking into the scene of cheerful chaos. Yixing only sighs and plops down in his usual seat next to Jongin. “H’lo, Taeminnie.” Taemin beams when Jonghyun pats him on the head.

“Hyung! Did you watch practice?” 

“Do you seriously not see him sitting at the window every other day?” Jinki pulls a face. 

“ _No,_ I have tunnel vision!” Taemin insists, wiping at a skate blade. “I don’t _pretend_ to ignore him, I get hyper-focused.” 

“Why so serious?” Jinki chuckles while Sehun forgoes his Minho cuddle session and slinks back to his seat to untie his skates. 

“It just happens,” Taemin insists. “Nini, do you ever have one of those really good practices where you kinda zone out?” He looks to Jongin for support, and Jongin glances up. 

“Huh? Yeah, usually when I’m… uh, working on new jumps or figuring out choreography, that kind of thing. When I need to concentrate really hard.” 

“Exactly.” Taemin snaps his fingers in Jongin’s direction, then points at Jinki. “There’s nothing wrong with me.” 

“He said it doesn’t happen every time,” Jinki retorts. 

“We all know Jongin-hyung gets a little air-headed when it comes to _some_ people though,” Sehun offers with a smirk. Jongin fixes him with a glare from across the locker room. 

“Listen, _hoe--_ ” He’s about to tell Sehun off when the locker room opens rather timidly and Baekhyun peeks in. 

“Am I allowed in here?” Yixing’s jaw drops to the floor. 

“You have practice,” Jongin states, looking equally as confused. “What are you doing here?” 

“Baek!” Yixing perks up next to Jongin once the initial surprise has worn off, and Baekhyun lets Jongin’s question go flying over his head, instead choosing to focus all his attention on beaming at the Chinese skater. “Good job!” 

“His team won 3-0 in the LCK Spring Season playoffs,” Jongin announces to the somewhat confused locker room while Baekhyun makes heart eyes at Yixing.

“Congratulations!” Jonghyun smiles and throws a knowing look to Yixing, whose day has just gotten ten times better. “That’s awesome.” 

“Thanks!” Baekhyun looks up and fist bumps Jonghyun in gratitude. “I appreciate it.” 

“Looks like he’s not the only one who won,” Jinki mutters to Minho, who slings a confidential arm over his training mate of twelve years in silent agreement as they watch Yixing and Baekhyun’s interactions together. 

“They’re cute,” Minho murmurs to Jinki. “At least Xing doesn’t look as beaten down these days.”

“It’s really hard being away from home and training in a foreign country,” Jinki agrees quietly, both of them sympathizing with Yixing. “Remember that summer we spent in Canada from when we were still in Novice? And we did nothing but eat and sleep and skate?” 

Minho heaves a sigh. “That hotel room was _so_ small.” 

“But we got better,” Jinki smiles. “Wasn’t that Nationals medal so worth it?” 

“Okay, yeah, but… you know.” Minho trails off but Jinki nods, knowing that both of them are sharing the same thoughts of their humble beginning, when Kibum wasn’t an established coach with esteem and respect and both skaters were constantly overlooked in lower tier competitions. The two are Kibum’s first and oldest students, having gone through years of hardship and struggle before Minho had finally made a breakthrough for their small training team, earning his first Nationals medal as a Novice men’s champion. The spotlight had rocketed Jinki, Kibum, and himself into sudden recognition, not to mention his nickname--Choi “Flaming Charisma” Minho--was born out of the Novice debut “Fire Dance” program that’s still a fan favorite to this day at ice shows. Now, the two skaters share a connection that runs deeper than blood, and instinctually take care of the younger skaters in their little group. As if their seniority as students and competitors didn’t already speak volumes about their status, they sometimes even stand in at the boards as coaches at competitions for one of their dongsaengs if Kibum’s busy warming up another skater. 

“This is getting really depressing,” Minho says after a moment of reminiscing. He nudges Jinki. “Look how far we’ve come.” The two of them look fondly at the messy scene in the locker room; Jonghyun is indignantly retorting at one of Taemin’s comments while Jongin laughs along with his sunbae, Sehun’s skate is still untied but he ignores it in favor of flicking pieces of melted ice slush at Jongin, and Yixing is blushing furiously while he packs his things up and Baekhyun squats down to keep flirting with him. 

“Looks like a minor improvement to me.” Jinki snorts as a towel goes flying across the room at Sehun’s head from Jongin’s side. Minho cracks up. 

\--

“You play so well,” Yixing tells Baekhyun over the din of the locker room. “I am proud of you.” 

“Thank you, hyung,” Baekhyun’s face splits into a wide, puppy-like smile. Yixing fights the sudden urge to pat the younger boy on the head and gather him up into a hug. Yixing sits up from tucking his skates into his skate bag and slings the duffel bag over one shoulder. He would’ve used his suitcase, but this is his official Team China bag, newly shipped to him for the season, and he couldn’t resist taking it to the rink just once or twice before leaving it home to only use it at competitions to carry his extra baggage and costumes. Now, he’s secretly glad that he gets to show off to Baekhyun a little bit, who grazes the flag on the side of the bag with a slender finger. 

“Nice bag,” Baekhyun murmurs. “It’s official, right?” Yixing nods. “The design looks hella cool.” The skater only smiles. 

“Do you have practice? I hear Jongin, he say you do…?” 

“I do, in about forty-five minutes.” Baekhyun glances at his watch. “I have a break, so I thought I’d come visit.” Yixing smiles as he reaches for the locker room door. 

“Dang, you’re not even gonna say good-bye?” Jongin complains, and Yixing turns around apologetically. 

“Bye guys. I see you tomorrow.” 

“Are you going home with him?” Sehun asks unsurprisingly, and Yixing shakes his head quickly. “So innocent,” Sehun snorts. 

“Unlike you!” is the last thing Yixing hears before the locker room door swings shut. 

“Yeah, so anyways,” Baekhyun says after a moment of awkward silence walking down the dim hallway back into the lobby of the rink towards the entrance. “I just had a quick break and I kind of missed you.” There’s a hint of teasing to Baekhyun’s voice. 

“Oh,” Yixing blushes and holds the door open for Baekhyun. There’s hardly any temperature difference between the ice rink and the outside air, and Baekhyun shivers slightly while Yixing’s still warm from ~~showing off~~ practice.

“Why is it still freezing? It’s freaking April,” Baekhyun grumbles. 

“Do you want?” Yixing offers the thin but warm Team China down jacket dangling off of his forearm. 

“Uhhh… aren’t those… special? Like, Jongin said something about them being suuuuper off limits?” 

“Doesn’t matter,” Yixing tells him, draping the jacket around Baekhyun’s shoulders and gently directing him around the rink to the back parking lot that nobody uses except for when they’re jogging around the building or doing sprints. “Nobody will see us.” 

“H-huh? Where are we going?” 

“Oh? I thought you come to rink for celebration,” Yixing looks at him in surprise. 

“I--I wanted to see you.” 

“Last time you say you have theory,” Yixing gently reminds him to watch Baekhyun’s face turn from pink to scarlet. 

“Oh! I was--I was kinda joking, I didn’t actually mean, I--” 

“Do you want?” Yixing asks the question again in a much different context, gently crowding up into Baekhyun’s personal space teasingly. “You deserve it.” His thumb comes up to trace Baekhyun’s jawline and Baekhyun leans towards the touch. Yixing’s not sure if Baekhyun knows his lips have already parted in anticipation and he suppresses a chuckle. _He’s so eager._

“I…” Baekhyun is completely at a loss for words. “I don’t know how,” he whispers, dropping his gaze from Yixing’s in embarrassment. 

“That’s okay.” Yixing waits patiently for some sort of verbal confirmation, but in Baekhyun’s current state of mind, clearly that isn’t going to happen. Yixing drops his skate bag on the ground and takes Baekhyun’s hand to lead him towards the back wall of the rink, pushing him up against the gray cement much like he did at their date last week. 

“Baek,” Yixing presses gently for consent, and Baekhyun’s Adam’s apple bobs when he swallows to moisten his dry throat. He nods shakily. 

“Oh, Jesus Christ,” Baekhyun whispers just before Yixing’s soft lips touch his and set a leisurely, unhurried pace. Baekhyun’s eyes flutter shut when Yixing’s right hand laces itself into Baekhyun’s slender fingers. Yixing’s left hand rests gently against the nape of Baekhyun’s neck. After a few languid kisses, Yixing takes Baekhyun’s lower lip into his mouth and sucks it gently between his teeth, causing Baekhyun to let out a tiny whimper at how good it feels. Not pausing to let Baekhyun take a breath, Yixing tastes cinnamon on his tongue when it slips inside Baekhyun’s mouth, causing the younger to open his mouth even more and feebly attempt to match Yixing’s movements. 

“ _Hmff_ ,” Baekhyun moans, and Yixing pulls back a few inches, delighting in Baekhyun’s bright red cheeks. “Oh, God. Oh, fuck…” Baekhyun’s eyes are glassy and totally blissed out. 

“Look so beautiful,” Yixing tells him before diving back in. Baekhyun whimpers again when Yixing begins moving with more fervor, and Yixing smiles against Baekhyun’s lips when the younger starts kissing back, instinctually parting then pressing tight with Yixing’s steady rhythm. 

“Hyung--” Baekhyun’s right hand was curled up against Yixing’s chest, but now it’s shyly slid down to wrap around the skater’s thin waist during the kiss. The position puts Yixing’s hips flush against Baekhyun’s; Yixing’s laugh is egotistical, but not unkind when Baekhyun’s arousal presses into his lower stomach. He’s half-hard himself from all of Baekhyun’s involuntary sounds and the intoxicating feeling of kissing the inexperienced gamer, but Baekhyun feels rock hard against him and Yixing allows himself to preen a little bit. Baekhyun looks away, ashamed. 

“It is okay. Come here,” Yixing soothes as if they’re not already pressed together, and dips his head down to pepper kisses across Baekhyun’s precious cheeks and nose until Baekhyun turns back towards him shyly. “So pretty,” he murmurs just before capturing his lips again. Baekhyun is beside himself from all the attention that Yixing is lavishing onto him, silently willing the skater to never let him go. Luckily for him, Yixing isn’t keen on releasing Baekhyun from their intertwined position either; the hand on Baekhyun’s neck slowly creeps up and caresses the soft, fluffy brown hair that was curled and styled earlier from streaming. Baekhyun sighs in pleasure because Yixing’s hand is now carding through his hair gently; he tastes sweet, smells heavenly, and the only thing that Baekhyun can process right now is that _this is infinitely better than winning any game._ When Baekhyun’s tongue hesitantly touches the tip of Yixing’s in between their connected lips, Yixing patiently allows Baekhyun to wield his newfound dominance and lick into the elder’s mouth bashfully. 

“I don’t know what I’m doing,” Baekhyun tells him awkwardly when Yixing pulls back slightly for air. “I’m really sorry--” 

“No apology,” Yixing shushes him, pressing a kiss to the tip of his nose. “You are perfect.” At this, Baekhyun looks up to Yixing, silently pleading for another kiss. “ _Bǎobèi…”_ The pet name slips out before Yixing can catch it in his throat, and Yixing grits his jaw while his confidence falters. “Oh no. S-sorry.” 

“What did you say?” Baekhyun pulls back just slightly. “I didn’t understand.” Yixing hesitates, unsure if he should translate lest Baekhyun find it unfitting for… well, whatever they are. 

_“Bǎobèi._ It’s like… like…” Yixing finds it ridiculously ironic that he can’t even find the right words to translate it when he decides to come clean. His Korean always fails him when he needs it the most--press conferences and talking to gorgeous, cheeky, nerdy gamer boys. “Like _jagiya_. Darling.” He finally settles on the right word. 

“Oh.” Baekhyun nods slowly. “Nobody’s ever called me that before,” he wilts slightly in Yixing’s arms, and Yixing feels a pang of sympathy for him. _It must be difficult_ , he thinks to himself, _spending all that time inside his apartment with only a TeamSpeak voice chat and a game to keep him company._ There are many facets of skating that require Yixing to keep up outer appearances and become comfortable in front of people. But Baekhyun has to be charismatic and charming even when “performing” for a faceless crowd. At least Yixing gets to see and hear his audience’s reaction. Still, he sympathizes with the overwhelming feeling of loneliness as an elite athlete, even though perhaps it differs for both of them slightly. Yixing’s solidarity mainly stems from figure skating being a solo sport, especially in his discipline; whereas Baekhyun has his teammates to keep him company. But Yixing knows enough to understand how demanding pro-gamer schedules are, and how socially isolating the lifestyle can be. 

“Baobei,” Yixing says quietly, but with more certainty. “ _Wǒ de bǎobèi._ My baobei.” Baekhyun looks up and curls into Yixing’s palm against the side of his cheek. 

“No, you.” But Baekhyun’s shining eyes give away his happiness hidden behind the cheeky retort. Yixing leans down once more. 

\--

A few days later, Sehun pulls on Jongin’s arm to get his attention. 

“Your sunbae’s improvising again.” 

“He’s not _my_ sunbae,” Jongin rolls his eyes but turns to watch Taemin skate to ‘Arrival of the Birds’ with Sehun. “It could honestly just be his program,” Jongin purses his lips in appraisal as Taemin curves gracefully to the side, creating a beautiful silhouette with his body. 

“How do you improve improvisation?” Sehun, too, is enthralled by the elder skater. 

“You do it a lot.” Jinki stops by the walls for a drink of water. “And you learn what angles look good on you. Muscle memory.” 

“Huh.” Sehun focuses his attention on Taemin again. 

“Stop staring. Go work on your Flip.” Jinki gently nudges Sehun. 

“He’s staring too!” Sehun protests, motioning to Jongin. “Why don’t you tell him off?” 

“Cause there’s no point.” There’s a knowing glimmer in Jinki’s eye when he waves Sehun off. “Hey, Nini,” Jinki gently shakes Jongin’s arm. 

“Yeah?” Jongin hums to indicate that he’s listening, but doesn’t tear his eyes away from Taemin. 

“Go skate,” Jinki prompts. Jongin turns towards his favorite hyung when Taemin glides back to Minseok. 

“Huh?” 

“Skate,” Jinki pushes Jongin. “Before Kibum yells at you for staying still for so long.” 

“Hyung,” Jongin begins. “Could you listen to a piece of music for me? Minseok and I both think it’s a really good Free Skate piece but I wanted a second opinion…” 

“Sure. After practice. Go skate now.” Mollified by Jinki’s promise, Jongin shakes his head a little and skates off. 

\--

“Alright, let’s see this music.” Jinki holds a hand out for Jongin’s phone. Jongin reaches over to pass it to him along with earbuds. He waits with bated breath as Jinki presses play and closes his eyes. 

“Mmm,” is Jinki’s comment when he passes the phone back. 

“Is that a no?” Jongin’s mouth twists to the side. “I really like it, and Minseok does as well…” 

“On the contrary, I do like it. It suits you very well.” Jinki smiles. “But I’m surprised you decided to ask me.” 

“Why?” Jongin pouts although he’s glad to have received additional feedback. “I always ask you about music and stuff, hyung.” 

“Why not Taeminnie? He’s so good with improv and interpretation.” Jinki watches Jongin struggle with himself. “Just ask him,” Jinki sighs. “I’m sure he won’t refuse you. You know, Nini,” Jinki grabs his skate guards and tissue box from the wall and begins skating off the ice, “He’s not that scary once you get to know him.” 

“Getting to know him is the scary part,” Jongin mutters under his breath, casting a glare at Jinki’s retreating figure. As if on cue, Taemin skates up to the wall to collect his things as well. The flurry of snow that flies up when Taemin stops sprays Jongin’s black skates and Jongin yelps in surprise. To his astonishment, Taemin’s face is mischievous when he looks up. 

“How was practice?” Taemin’s been asking him that after every session for the past week. 

“It was fine,” Jongin says lamely, tugging his glove off with his teeth and letting it drop onto the pile of jacket, water bottle, and tissue box in his arms. “How about you, sunbae?” 

“Oh, you know.” Taemin shrugs. “Choosing music.” 

“Have you found anything yet?” Jongin asks. 

“Perhaps. But I haven’t shown it to Minseok yet. It’s a bold choice,” Taemin says mysteriously, and Jongin is dying to know, but too shy to ask. 

“S-sunbae,” Jongin begins once they’re both off the ice. 

“Yeah?” 

“I was wondering if you could… help listen to a potential free skate piece… for me,” Jongin fidgets with the hem of his shirt. “If you’re too busy, it’s fine,” he adds quickly, and at this, Taemin’s mouth quirks up in amusement. 

“Too busy to spare you four minutes? I’m not that busy, Nini.” Taemin stops walking towards the locker rooms and instead sits down on one of the benches in the lobby of the ice rink. He beckons Jongin towards him and motions for the younger to sit down next to him. 

“What’s it called?” Taemin inquires while Jongin digs around in his pocket for earbuds and shakily pulls the music up. 

“Uhm--’Lilies of the Valley’ by Jun Miyake.” When Jongin cautiously offers him the phone, Taemin only takes one earbud and lets Jongin keep the other. 

“Listen with me so you know what I’m referring to if I comment,” Taemin instructs. Jongin nods and presses play with shaking hands. “Oh, wow.” Taemin’s eyebrows raise in appraisal almost immediately. “This is unique. Repetitive,” Taemin adds after about thirty seconds. Jongin hums faintly in agreement. “So much room to demonstrate skating skills and artistry.” The rest of the song passes in relative silence, but Jongin can hardly pay attention to the song. Instead, all he hears is the frantic thumping of his heartbeat while Taemin sits centimeters away from him, thoughtfully tapping out the beat on his thigh. When Taemin’s shoulders brush together with Jongin’s on account of the short wire connecting them, Jongin completely loses his place in the music. Thankfully Taemin doesn’t make many comments until the song finishes. 

“So…?” Jongin pulls his side of the earbud out, and fights back a blush as he looks up and straight into Taemin’s eyes. He’s nervous now; anxious to see what one of the best performers in the world has to say about his choice of music. 

“I love it.” Taemin smiles and Jongin’s heart soars. “It suits you so well. What’s especially great about it is that it’s so nuanced. There are a lot of sections--like, here.” Taemin reaches for Jongin’s phone and motions for him to put the earbud back in. “You can hear how well a spin would fit, right?” Jongin nods. “But think again,” Taemin’s voice is throaty and earnest, getting excited even though it’s not even his program. “What if you put a choreographic step sequence in there instead? A really long spread eagle into a Triple Axel when the music changes.” 

“Oh wow,” Jongin murmurs in genuine surprise. He had never considered that. 

“And you can make some really awesome silhouettes that would complement the music well. Like, try this.” Jongin’s heart lurches when Taemin casually grabs his wrist and pulls him to the glass that separates the rink and the lobby. “You can see your reflection, yes? Okay. Cross your left foot over your right, like this.” Jongin follows his instructions nervously, afraid to make a single mistake. “Then arms above your head. That’s it,” Taemin instructs. “Now turn on your toe picks while arching backwards, and circle your arms as well.” Jongin stumbles a bit doing the move without momentum in his skate guards, and Taemin reaches out to steady him with a hand on his back. Jongin flails, disappointed at having to struggle to master a simple move, yet caught in the small embrace and Taemin’s warm hand on the small of his back. 

“Yes,” Taemin laughs, looking thoroughly amused at Jongin’s clumsiness while the younger blushes furiously. “That would look good on you. On the ice, of course.” 

“Oh,” is all Jongin can manage, giggling shyly with Taemin. 

“Yep, you can put it in the middle of a step sequence or something. In front of the judges,” Taemin adds. “There’s so much space to play with the audience.” 

“C-could you show me the move again, please?” Taemin demonstrates and Jongin looks on in awe. “I really like that,” Jongin murmurs. He’s twice as excited about the music now as he used to be. 

“Do you?” Taemin’s eyes light up. “A few others also come to mind, if you want to see--” 

“Yes!” Jongin barely stops himself from squealing. He hadn’t expected Taemin to offer him feedback so readily, and now that he is, Jongin almost feels as if he’s living in some sort of fever dream. “If-if you don’t mind.” 

“Not at all. Play the music from about thirty seconds in, please?” Jongin watches while Taemin stretches a delicately posed hand out towards him, then draws it back in and around his head while rolling his neck around. 

“That works well,” Taemin murmurs, almost as if talking to himself. He can already feel himself slipping into hyper-focus. “And also opposition will be nice, especially with this heavy backbeat.” 

“Wow…” Jongin watches attentively while his sunbae breaks down small transition steps as brainstorm material for the choreography. When watching Taemin walk through movements effortlessly even though it’s only his second time hearing the music, it becomes crystal clear to Jongin why Taemin is so highly revered by skating critics within the international scene. Walking through choreography that is meant to be done with momentum on frictionless surfaces almost always looks somewhat awkward when those two things are taken away. Yet with Taemin, Jongin’s just as starstruck as when he sees those same gestures on the ice, and he’s sure that it’s not just his emotions coming into play. When Taemin looks at him again with a faraway look in his eyes, Jongin bows deeply. “Thank you, sunbae.” 

“Don’t,” Taemin complains, gesturing for Jongin to stand upright again. “You just asked me for help.” 

“Yeah, I… I just wanted a second opinion, but I’m really excited to use this now,” Jongin fumbles with his phone, slipping it back into his pocket. “Do you mind if I show Minseok some of the things you showed me?” 

“Of course not. They’re for your music.” Taemin walks back to the bench to pick his things up. “And Minseok is a great choreographer, he’ll make it even better.” 

“But you’re already so good at musicality and interpretation,” Jongin tells Taemin while they walk to the locker room together. “You can choreograph your own programs.” 

“I’m flattered,” Taemin offers humbly, flashing Jongin his cute smile. “Feel free to come to me anytime, yeah?” Jongin nods, maybe a little too eagerly. “I can’t wait to see you at JGP’s this year, Nini. You’re going to do so well.” The little air that Jongin has left in his lungs after watching Taemin choreograph whooshes out in a single breath and Jongin’s cheeks heat up at the compliment. 

“Really?” He asks, and Taemin turns to look at him almost indulgently. 

“Yeah. Your Quad Flip is getting there, isn’t it? Have you landed it clean yet?” 

“On two feet, but not one foot yet.” 

“You’re getting there,” Taemin encourages. “You’ll be good this year.” 

“T-thank you,” Jongin murmurs. When they walk into the locker room together, Jongin fixes Sehun with a very pointed glare while his friend smirks. Jinki glances up at the two of them, but then returns to his conversation with Minho. 

“What are you planning on doing for the rest of the day?” Jongin asks Taemin nervously, hoping to keep a conversation going. It’s the first time he tries to bring something up that is not skating related. 

“Hmm? I’m gonna go to the gym, and Jjong and I usually have dinner together on Wednesdays,” Taemin smiles. “What about you?” 

“Just run some errands,” Jongin shrugs. “Study a bit.” 

“That sounds relaxing.” 

“It’s alright, I suppose,” Jongin murmurs, wiping at his blades. “Dinner with Jonghyun-hyung sounds fun.” 

“It’s like having dinner with my mom.” Taemin bursts into laughter at just the thought, then changes his voice to imitate his hyung. “Taeminnie, you need to eat more. Taeminnie, what did Kyungsoo say about your jumps today? Taeminnie, you have to tell me where you’re going, it’s dangerous in the city alone.” 

“He’s caring,” Jongin murmurs. “He has a heart of gold.” 

“I’ll tell him you said that about him,” Taemin says sincerely. “That’s really nice of you.” 

“It’s true,” Jongin says earnestly. “He was so nice to me on my first day training with Kibum, and I barely knew you guys except from seeing you all on television… you’re lucky to have someone looking out for you like that,” he adds. 

“I know. He’s so busy, getting home late from the radio station every night, but he still wakes up early to watch my practices and he checks in on me really often.” Taemin runs his fingers lightly through the front of his hair, neatly combing out his bangs. Jongin taps his skate guards on the ground a little harder to rid them of melted ice and to resist the urge to reach out and part Taemin’s hair for him. 

“Actually, I was scared of everyone when I first came to Kibum,” Jongin admits to Taemin, who lets out a laugh. 

“Even Jjong?” When Jongin nods, Taemin fixes him with a curious smile. “What’s there to be scared of with _him?_ ” 

“He--” Jongin waves his hands around helplessly. “He’s this huge, famous MC… I heard him on the radio all the time, covering all these events and stories… and then I walk into this rink, _knowing_ I’m gonna skate on the same ice as all my idols so I’m already scared out of my wits. Like, I learned Triple Axel by watching Minho-hyung’s videos on YouTube. I had to take down a poster of Jinki-hyung cause it was way too weird to be teammates with him and see him on my bedroom wall,” Jongin tells Taemin, whose eyes only become more and more crescent-shaped. 

“Have you told him this?” 

“No-- _don’t you dare!_ ” Jongin shrieks when Taemin turns towards Jinki playfully. 

“What’s going on?” Jinki looks up at both of them. 

“Nini has--” 

“Sunbae,” Jongin reaches out to grip Taemin’s wrist helplessly, ducking his head to hide his flaming red cheeks. 

“Nothing,” Taemin turns back to Jongin with something like a smirk on his face. “Your face is so red, Nini.” 

“Uh huh.” Jongin releases Taemin’s wrist reluctantly and pats his cheeks. “Jesus Christ. I should’ve never told you.” 

“Probably not.” Taemin grins cheekily. “But continue.” 

“With the--oh. Yeah, so I was hella intimidated,” Jongin picks up where he left off. “And you intimidated me, too,” Jongin mumbles. 

“I get that a lot. But why Jjong?” 

“Cause I didn’t expect one of Korea’s most famous MCs to be friends with you?” Jongin sighs. “It kinda felt like… like you know how if you wipe out on a jump, all the breath gets punched out of you?” When Taemin nods, Jongin nods along with him. “Flaming Charisma Choi Minho out on the ice--one fall. Jinki-hyung waved to me in the locker room--another fall. And then you--uh, you smiled at me and so I died on the inside, and then _Jonghyun-hyung_ walked in after practice and there I was, in this very corner, and--” Jongin shakes his head, indicating there aren’t even words to explain how he felt. “Nope. Nope. Couldn’t do it.” 

“Are you scared of us now?” Taemin asks when he finally catches his breath from laughing throughout the entire story. Jongin bites his cheek and busies himself with packing up to distract himself from fanboying too hard over Taemin’s cute laugh. 

“N-not really.” Jongin carefully places his skates into his suitcase. “On the ice, yeah, but off the ice… I--I like to think I’ve gotten to know everyone a little better.” 

Taemin smiles and lightly punches Jongin’s shoulder. “You’re one of us now, silly.” Jongin has no way to stop the shocked smile from spreading across his face at this. “You’re the 2019 National Junior Men’s Bronze Medalist. Give yourself credit where it’s due.” 

  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It took two bowls of strawberry ice cream, four hours of searching for music, a giant thunderstorm, Minho's broad chest, Jinki's cute smile, masochistic tendencies, a lesson on self-destruction, and a very, very patient Aranee for me to get this chapter done. Hope you guys like it. :3  
> Stay safe everyone.
> 
> Here's some music for you all that was mentioned in the chapter!  
> [Taemin's improvisation session](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H9gFLkNdHvA)   
> [Jongin's Free Skate music for the 2019-2020 season!](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hc3wWgnDGVk)


	11. Chapter 11

Junmyeon sighs as he makes his way to his apartment, footsteps echoing loudly in the stairwell. When he reaches the door, he fumbles for his keys and manages to kick the door open with a foot without spilling the contents of the grocery bags in his arms. The dark, sensual music playing from a speaker somewhere in his living room honestly doesn’t surprise him—nor is it entirely unwelcome—but Junmyeon still mentally steels himself to deal with what’s coming after a long day of work and classes at the university. 

“Sehunnie,” he greets, hoping his tiredness shows in his eyes when he makes his way deeper into his apartment. 

“Hyung, what do you think of this?” Sehun turns up the music to a ‘50 Shades of Grey’ soundtrack, smirking at Junmyeon as he does so. 

“I don’t know. You know skating music isn’t my area of expertise,” Junmyeon sighs. He’s too exhausted to be teased. Junmyeon groans internally as he looks his boyfriend up and down, noting that he’s an extra four inches taller than usual thanks to the brand new set of skates on his feet and wearing nothing but one of Junmyeon’s sweatshirts and a pair of boxers. He rocks domestic-skater-boyfriend-chic like nobody’s business. _Of course he does_. “You’re breaking in new skates,” Junmyeon observes. 

“Yup!” Sehun grins at him. “It’s that time of year again.”

“Naturally.” Junmyeon offers him a small smile. “Well, I’m just gonna put these groceries--” 

“LOVE’S MY RELIGION BUT HE WAS MY FAITH,” Sehun belts out the lyrics of the next track, pointing at Junmyeon and swiveling his hips sensually as he does so. 

“Oh Sehun, _please--_ ” 

“SOMETHING SO SACRED, SO HARD TO REPLACE; FALLING FOR HIM WAS LIKE FALLING FROM GRACE.” 

“Falling for you was a _mistake,_ ” Junmyeon grumbles, haphazardly setting down his armful of groceries on the kitchen island. 

“No need to _imagine_ .” There’s a clunking of skates on hardwood, and Sehun’s breath is hot on Junmyeon’s neck. “ _Cause I know it’s true…_ ” 

“Don’t--” 

“THEY SAY _ALL GOOD BOYS_ GO TO HEAVEN, BUT BAD BOYS BRING HEAVEN TO YOUUUUUUU~” Junmyeon turns around in Sehun’s arms and his heart beats a little quicker when he has to tilt his head up to look at the young skater because of how tall he is on skates. 

“Sehunnie,” Junmyeon tries to make his voice as stern as possible, “Let hyung—” he falters and Sehun pounces on the opportunity. 

“ _Yes?_ Anything for you.” He bats his eyelashes. 

“Let hyung put the milk away.” Junmyeon turns away from him. 

“But hyung…” Sehun pouts and turns on another piece of music that’s equally as provocative. “You gotta help me find something _amazing. Show-stopping.”_ As if to emphasize his point, Sehun runs both hands down the front of Junmyeon’s ragged sweatshirt, caressing his upper body shamelessly, and bites his lip, which should not be as seductive as Sehun had made it out to be, especially in his ridiculous outfit. 

“Why do you have to make things difficult?” Junmyeon asks desperately. 

“I’m not making anything difficult. If at all, this should be an _easy decision,_ hyung.” As if to emphasize his point, Sehun’s hands slip under the sweatshirt before putting an arch into his back and a glint in his eye when he stretches in front of Junmyeon, pulling both arms upwards lazily to tantalize with just a hint of milky white skin and a delicious v-line that makes Junmyeon _die inside_. 

“God dammit.” Junmyeon sticks his head in the fridge along with the apples to cool down his burning cheeks. 

“What about ‘Nemesis’?” Sehun muses, fumbling for his phone again. “Nathan Chen skated to this,” he announces when the heavy beat plays over the speakers. He strikes a dramatic pose and spins around on one skate, his skate guards offering him some momentum to do so on the hardwood floor. “NEMESIS IS,” Sehun declares, now doing a full blown walk-through of a step sequence. “NEMESIS IS--NEMESIS IS--NEMESIS IS, IS THE MOTHER OF--POWERRRRR--” Junmyeon screeches in protest. 

“ _NO CHOREOGRAPHY_ ON MY FLOORS!” Junmyeon marches towards a smirking Sehun. “You _know_ you’re supposed to stay on the rug. Get back where you belong,” Junmyeon’s hands wrap around Sehun’s deliciously tiny waist and back him up to the rug in the living room. “You leave scuff marks with your skate guards,” Junmyeon laments, examining his polished mahogany floors anxiously. 

“Hyung,” Sehun reaches out for Junmyeon’s shirt. His voice hasn’t lost the teasing undertone, but it’s softer, more persuasive. Junmyeon braces himself for the conversation they’ve had a million times. “You know you want to.” 

“I _do_ want to.” Junmyeon doesn’t turn around to face Sehun. “But I can’t.” 

“Says who?” Sehun wraps two lanky arms around Junmyeon’s shoulders and mouths up the side of his neck hotly, making sure to be generous with his tongue. Junmyeon shudders at the feeling. “I’m 19 in a year,” the younger whispers. “What’s the difference?” 

“One year and seven days.” Junmyeon arches his neck to give Sehun more room.

“Stop being so practical for just one second,” Sehun complains, nibbling at Junmyeon’s earlobe now. “Age is just a number.” 

“A number that makes you a minor while I am an adult.” 

“You’re being dramatic. We’ve been together for three years.” 

“And I have the self-control of a priest, if I do say so myself.” Junmyeon turns around to allow himself and a needy Sehun one lingering kiss before gently loosening Sehun’s grasp around him and walking back to the groceries. “Let me put these away, baby. You stay on the rug; listen to some music and break your skates in quietly,” Junmyeon tells him. “And if you’re good--” Sehun perks up. “I’ll let you sleep over tonight.” 

“Will you molest me?” 

“NO.” 

_“Pleaseeee_ molest me,” Sehun begs, kneeling and peering over the back of the couch so he can watch Junmyeon. “It’s consensual _and_ I’m legal. Everyone thinks we have sex on the daily anyways--” 

“And whose fault is that, always going on about it?” Junmyeon snorts. “We fool around enough already as it is.”

“Pleaseeeee, hyung. I want you so bad.” 

“One. Year. Sehun.” 

“Hyung. I have never wanted cock so badly in my life,” Sehun tells him quite seriously, and Junmyeon bursts into laughter. 

“Me, too. But I’ve waited three years, I can wait one more. Which means you can, too.” Junmyeon neatly flattens the paper bags and places them in a drawer to reuse later, then approaches Sehun. The younger hums happily when Junmyeon falls onto the couch with his boyfriend and kisses him sweetly, with no hint of anything deeper. “I love you more than anything,” Junmyeon murmurs. “Which is why I’ll wait for you.” 

“I don’t want to wait anymore,” Sehun whispers, but he’s placated at the moment while Junmyeon’s lips are on his. 

“You’re worth waiting for.” Junmyeon tells him, then chuckles. “So please make my life a little easier. You know I want you.” 

“It’s not my fault.” Sehun smirks, eyes curling into those crescent moons that Junmyeon loves. “I have a carefully crafted desirable image to maintain.” 

“So I’ve noticed,” Junmyeon grumbles, but pats Sehun’s head. “But you’re _my_ baby only.” 

“I’m yours, but not a baby.” 

“Are you sure?” Junmyeon raises one eyebrow appraisingly when Sehun pouts. 

“I’m not,” Sehun whines. 

“Okay, okay. You’re not a baby,” Junmyeon concedes, stroking Sehun’s hair back from his forehead. “You’re my big, bad, sexy Sehunnie, okay?” He goes back in for another kiss. “Does big, bad, sexy Sehunnie want to stay the night, then?” 

“Yes!” Sehun perks up immediately. “Can we watch ‘Yuri on Ice?’”

“Whatever you want.” Junmyeon tells him indulgently. “As long as it’s not sex,” he adds when Sehun opens his mouth to ask, chuckling when Sehun immediately turns on the puppy eyes. 

\--

“We’ve watched this a thousand times,” Junmyeon grumbles, but he still willingly crawls into bed next to Sehun and makes himself comfortable against his boyfriend’s chest. 

“It’s the only skating show I’ve watched that does the sport any justice,” Sehun complains. “Although the classics are still amazing. ‘Blades of Glory’ will never die.” 

“Uh huh.” Junmyeon can already feel himself getting sleepy from the warmth of the bed and resting against Sehun. “You gonna commentate for me?” 

“If you want.” Sehun wraps his arms around Junmyeon, pulling him closer. “I feel like I know the whole script by heart now.” 

“Honestly, me, too.” The two watch in amiable silence, with Sehun grumbling now and then about Safesport policies and inaccurate program content that only makes vague sense to Junmyeon, but at least it keeps him from falling asleep. Sehun giggles at all the fanservice and presses long, precious kisses to the top of Junmyeon’s head. 

“This is the scene,” Sehun shifts a little in the bed around the middle of episode 2. Junmyeon sighs as he realizes he’s been lulled into a false sense of security. 

“Do you have to act it out every time--” 

“ _Yuri, tell me everything about you.”_

“Junmyeon, tell me everything about you.” Sehun’s hand dips under Junmyeon’s chin and tilts his head upwards, forcing the elder to meet Sehun’s smirk with his own eye roll. 

“ _What kind of rink do you skate at? What’s in this city? Is there a girl you like?”_

“What kind of rink do you skate at? What’s in this city? Is there a girl you like?” Sehun doesn’t even have to look at the screen for reference. 

“You rascal.” Junmyeon’s laughing now. 

“ _Before we start practicing, let’s build some trust in our relationship.”_

“Before we start _practicing,_ ” Sehun reaches for Junmyeon’s hand, and Junmyeon wearily notes that Sehun’s version of practice has many different implications, “let’s build some trust in our relationship.” Sehun leans in and closes the distance between them, leaving the show completely forgotten. 

“Safesport does _not_ approve,” Sehun mumbles while Junmyeon kisses the corner of his mouth lightly before wandering down to his jawline. “Viktor should be fired at the very least.” 

“He’s hot,” Junmyeon murmurs against Sehun’s heated skin. 

“So am I. That doesn’t dissuade Coach Kibum from screaming at me during every session.” 

“Well, maybe if you paid a little more attention you’d get scolded less often,” Junmyeon offers rather sensibly. 

“Don’t tell me off now,” Sehun begs. One of his hands is already slipping under the covers and creeping into Junmyeon’s shirt. Junmyeon sighs, but lets the younger feel him up greedily. “Kiss me instead,” Sehun asks, and Junmyeon obeys, cupping his cheek tenderly. “Touch me, too?” 

“Brat,” Junmyeon murmurs with no real malice to his voice. His hands slip inside Sehun’s shirt and trace wide circles over the younger’s back while Sehun sighs happily into the kiss. Junmyeon inhales sharply when Sehun’s teeth tug lightly at his lower lip, requesting deeper access. He acquiesces and Sehun’s hands wander further up Junmyeon’s shirt, which is quickly becoming more of a hindrance than anything. As the kiss gets more passionate, Junmyeon’s mind becomes clouded by lust; his hands press against taut muscle and heated skin, feeling how strong and steady Sehun is pressed against him. An accidental brush of Sehun’s knee grazes tantalizingly close to Junmyeon’s growing erection, and Junmyeon stutters breathily.

“Junmyeon, let’s sleep together,” Sehun pulls back suddenly from their steamy make-out session and Junmyeon has to refocus. 

“Huh?” 

Sehun smirks. “As your coach, there’s so much I need to learn about you.” Junmyeon groans as he realizes that Sehun had gone right back to quoting the show, but the kiss he leaves on Sehun’s cheek is full of unspoken love and understanding. Despite his petulant whining, Sehun still pulls back every time things get too heated. Junmyeon knows it’s his way of saying that he loves Junmyeon (and himself) enough to respect the boundaries that Junmyeon insisted they set until Sehun turned 19. They fall asleep together somewhere around episode 7, a tangled mess of limbs so tightly intertwined that Junmyeon can’t even tell the beginning or end of Sehun anymore. 

\--

Junmyeon opens his eyes blearily in the morning to see sunshine streaming in through the window. It hits a still-sleeping Sehun in dappled patches through the blinds, making his skin glow golden-white against the sheets. Junmyeon hesitates, then slowly extricates himself from Sehun’s arms and sits up in the pile of pillows and blankets. The younger lets out a small snore, completely undisturbed. Looking down at his boyfriend, Junmyeon is painfully aware of the throbbing in his crotch. He remembers last night, with Sehun’s lips moving against his urgently, as if taking everything that Junmyeon can offer. Even without showing skin, Junmyeon focuses on how Sehun’s t-shirt clings to his frame, toned and well-built from hours upon hours at the rink and gym. For a minute, Junmyeon’s memory lapses, and he struggles to remember just _why_ he committed himself to four years of abstinence when Oh Sehun grew up _so well._ He knows they could go further, knows that he wants Sehun more than anything. But some part of his brain that isn’t currently occupied by thoughts of his boyfriend’s amazing physique stops him.

Junmyeon recalls himself; young and impressionable at 15, laying in bed next to his ex-boyfriend. It should’ve been different; Junmyeon mentally slaps himself for his stupid mistakes. He was a university student while Junmyeon had just entered high school at the time. They made a cute pair and Junmyeon, naive and eager to please, had given in to his ex’s advances just one month into the relationship. It was consensual and Junmyeon enjoyed the pleasure in the heat of the moment, but looking back, Junmyeon doesn't really know if it was actually his conscious choice. He had been too young and gullible to even understand what he’d been agreeing to. His reluctance and anxiety each time they slept together ate at Junmyeon, and they broke up soon afterwards. But for the following months, Junmyeon was still plagued with self-guilt. It wasn’t until years had passed and a few other relationships later that he realized he should’ve respected himself more and trusted his gut instinct that screamed at him that he was too young to understand the implications of carnal pleasure beyond just the fact that it felt good. 

The first time Junmyeon had met Sehun, he was in his first year of high school while Sehun was still in middle school. 

~

_Junmyeon is on his usual route to school, hands stuffed deep into the pockets of his khaki trousers and earbuds blasting music when he notices the boy, standing on the grass near the sidewalk, looking as if he’s holding back tears. Junmyeon makes his way towards him._

_“Hey, buddy. You okay?” Junmyeon tugs his earbuds out. The boy only sniffles, turns away from Junmyeon fearfully, and mumbles something incoherent. Junmyeon bends down a little to hear better._

_“My mom said I can’t talk to strangers,” the boy mumbles. Junmyeon has to suppress a laugh. He’s always had a soft spot for innocence._

_“My name is Junmyeon,” Junmyeon tells the boy. He taps the nameplate on his uniform. “I go to the high school next to your middle school.” He had recognized the uniform right away; it’s the same one hanging in the very back of his own closet. “Now we’re not strangers anymore, right?” The boy nods. “Your name is Sehun?” Another nod. “Sehunnie, are you lost?” Sehun nods for the third time. “Come on,” Junmyeon coaxes, holding out his hand. He’ll be late for school, but damned if he’s just going to leave a kid on the sidewalk. “I’ll take you to school today so you know how to get there next time.” Sehun obediently follows, wiping away the last of his tears._

_“Did you just move here?” Junmyeon hazards a guess._

_“Yes. My ice skating coach moved to Seoul and everyone who trains with him followed, including me,” Sehun tells him matter-of-factly. “My mom bought a house in that neighborhood.” Junmyeon looks back to where Sehun points to and realizes that it’s his own._

_“You’re an ice skater?”_

_“Yes,” Sehun smiles proudly for the first time. “I’ve been skating since I was six.”_

_“Wow!” Junmyeon emphasizes his surprised tone. “So you must be really good.”_

_“I am! I can already do all my doubles, and Coach Kibum said that I can start working on Triple Salchow when I turn 14.”_

_“Yeah?” Junmyeon has no idea what a Triple Sal-something is._

_“Yeah. I’m going to be in the Nationals one day,” Sehun brags. “Minho-sunbae said that he--he wants to compete against me when I grow up. But I’m going to win.”_

_“I’m sure you will,” Junmyeon indulges him, feeling his heart melt a little. From that day on, he wakes up thirty minutes earlier than usual to wait for Sehun, who apparently lives just down the block, and takes him under his wing. Sehun was a younger brother with endless energy, a hoobae who pestered Junmyeon for his old notes, and a good friend before he became something more. He only found out much, much later that Sehun had crushed on him for two years before finally confessing when he was 15._

_\--_

_“Hyung,” Sehun murmurs to him. They’re sitting on the swings in the neighborhood park, procrastinating homework for their respective classes and watching the sun set. “I have to tell you something.”_

_“What is it?” Junmyeon turns to look at Sehun. Already, Sehun has become so handsome and more mature, so unlike when Junmyeon first met him. Despite being three years younger, Sehun has gained a few inches on Junmyeon now, and he’s starting to fill out with small swells of muscle on his arms and broad chest. Junmyeon teases him relentlessly about the girls that trail him at all times in school and tries to quell his own thoughts about how soft Sehun’s lips look. He knows platonic affection is not enough to explain what he feels for Sehun anymore, but he continues to hold back, extremely aware that all of a sudden, he is now that older, more mature person in their dynamic._

_“I just, I feel like I’m going to explode if I don’t tell you,” Sehun fidgets. “Sometimes I look at you and I think you feel the same way, but I don’t know because you said I was like a younger brother to you? But--hyung, I wanna be so much more to you.” Even while confessing his feelings, Sehun’s tone comes out as a whine. “I like you.” Junmyeon’s breath catches in his throat and the world seems to stand still around them. “Will you please say something?” Sehun whispers. “I’m going to die.”_

_“Everyone dies eventually,” Junmyeon chokes out._

_“I really love your practicality, but I just--I need an answer.” Sehun waits miserably for another few minutes while Junmyeon fights hard with himself. It’s Sehun, Junmyeon tells himself. You can’t hurt him._

_But you like him, the small voice in the back of his head whispers. He likes you back._

_I don’t want to pressure him into anything he’s not ready for. Junmyeon’s memory of his own 15-year old self comes flying into the forefront of his brain. He deserves better than that._

_You have that power to protect him. You know all too well how it feels, but you don’t have to be that person. Junmyeon closes his eyes tightly and in that moment, holds himself to an unbreakable vow. He will not approach Sehun sexually before he turns 19, the age of majority in Korea._

_“Hyung,” Sehun whines, and this time, it sounds more like he’s trying to hold back tears._

_“What are you crying for?” Junmyeon lets loose a shaky chuckle._

_“Because you won’t tell me what you’re thinking and I-I’m scared I messed up.”_

_“Oh, Sehun.” Junmyeon laughs and stands up from the swing. “Come on,” he coaxes, holding out his hand. When Sehun obeys, Junmyeon intertwines their fingers and squeezes tightly, pulling Sehun into a gentle hug. “Be_ **_my_ ** _Sehunnie?” he asks softly, feeling butterflies swirl around in his stomach while the younger’s eyes light up with overflowing joy. “Be mine.”_

_~_

A rustling of bedsheets pulls Junmyeon out of his thoughts, and he watches as Sehun turns over a little so that sunshine hits an exposed shoulder where his t-shirt shifted a little. Sehun remains asleep while Junmyeon stares unabashedly at his incredibly hot boyfriend. The horny part of his brain suddenly kicks into high gear again and Junmyeon wants to kiss and lick until all that smooth, pale skin is littered with the prettiest shade of red. His dick throbs in his pajama pants and the movement is almost unconscious as Junmyeon presses his hand tightly against the fabric, sighing out quietly at the pleasure it brings. The feeling sparks something in Junmyeon, and he can’t help but palm himself, fisting a hand into the sheets and letting his head drop. Even though he knows he can’t increase the intensity enough to come, he just needs to curb a little bit of the pressure that’s been building in his gut since he got home last night. Just because he suppresses his desires doesn’t mean they’re not there, after all. He’s snapped out of his daydream of Sehun in far dirtier positions when Sehun stretches upwards and yawns before opening his eyes and searching around for Junmyeon, who’s still sitting up in bed, but is now tugging the covers up around his waist. When the two lock eyes, Junmyeon smiles sweetly and leans over to wrap his arms around Sehun, nothing but innocent, caring love shining through his eyes. 

“My baby,” Junmyeon murmurs tenderly, doing his best to will his awkward erection down. “How’d you sleep?” 

“Mmf,” Sehun’s always even more petulant when he wakes up. His arms wrap around Junmyeon’s back and cling tightly. 

“You have practice in a few hours,” Junmyeon tells him, brushing strands of hair away from his forehead. Sehun flops his head side to side on the pillow, indicating his reluctance to get up. “Please tell me you brought all your skate stuff here when you broke into my apartment last night. Kibum will yell at you if you’re late again.” 

“Mmf.” 

“I love you.” Junmyeon drops a precious kiss on Sehun’s cheek. “So much.” The other cheek now. 

“Loveyoutoo,” Sehun mumbles, still half-asleep. Junmyeon closes his eyes and lets his head drop onto Sehun’s chest. A benign morning cuddle never killed anyone. 

\--

Jongin is having a bad day. Not that he hasn’t had shitty practices before, but it’s been a while since he’s had one that’s gone completely awry. The most ironic part of it is that it isn’t because his jumps are going to pieces--in fact, Jongin has yet to do more than three Triple Salchows and a few Triple Loops. 

“Left!” Minho’s voice carries across the rink, and Jongin swerves to the right just as a whoosh of air blows past him and Minho flies into a Triple Axel-Double Toe combination. 

“I’m just cursed today, aren’t I…” Jongin mutters to himself while leaning back and reaching out for the wall in order to avoid Jinki, who is busy with a choreography lesson with Minseok.

“Can’t a boy just do… one, just _one_ Triple Loop?” Jongin grouses to Sehun as he makes his way back along the perimeter of the rink to his water bottle. He’s stressed just from avoiding everyone. Today, apparently, every single one of his hyung’s has a vendetta against him. 

“Stop circling, then,” Sehun shrugs. 

“I’m not in a mental loop,” Jongin groans. “Everyone’s just out to get me today. I've been almost run over six different times by three different people in twenty minutes.” 

“Oop--yeah, sucks being the youngest in practice,” Sehun sympathizes. Jongin nods fervently, feeling very much out of place and not at all like he belongs to the group like Taemin had told him not too long ago. A strong emphasis on hoobae-sunbae respect within the sport means that on the ice, right-of-way is allocated by seniority, unless a skater is running their program, in which case they get absolute priority. Unfortunately for Jongin, who is the second youngest and still a Junior-level skater rather than Senior, this means that he spends a good amount of time just trying to dodge Minho, Jinki, Yixing, and Taemin. Sehun usually struggles with the same thing, but today he’s just circling the ice, doing skating skills and edge exercises in order to break in his new skates. Most of the time, the four older skaters are self-aware and it’s not like their practice sessions are _that_ crowded with only six people on the ice. But today, Jongin just seems to be getting in everyone’s way. He makes to venture off the wall to try again for a Triple Loop, but wiggles backwards and tips onto his heels to fall against the boards when Jinki comes flying down the ice. Sehun bursts into laughter. 

“Told you,” Jongin grumbles. Sehun pats him on the back. 

“G’luck. Hey,” he tosses to Jongin before he skates away. “At least you get to be run over by Taemin.” 

“Yeah,” Jongin echoes hollowly. “Lucky me.” He peers down the ice to make sure nobody’s coming before he pushes off the wall once more. Circling around the far end of the rink, Jongin gathers speed into a Triple Loop, but to no avail--he skids to a halt, letting snow fly out from his blades as he reluctantly gives way to Yixing’s Triple Lutz. 

“My bad,” Jongin waves away Yixing’s apology as he lands. “Your right-of-way.” He catches a lull in practice about ten minutes later, when three out of six skaters are up against the wall, and uses the opportunity to land a couple more triples. 

“ _Watch!_ ” Taemin’s voice is way too close to him, and Jongin can’t place it as he cuts holding his landing of a Triple Flip short to avoid Taemin, but it’s too late--Jongin’s hands instinctively fly up to shield himself from impact as Taemin crashes into him. There’s a yell, probably from Minseok or Kibum, but Jongin barely hears it. All the breath is knocked out of him as the two tumble onto the ice, skidding apart due to all the momentum that Taemin had built up. Jongin groans as he lays on the ice, staring up at the bright lights of the rink. A little bit away from him, Taemin has made his way onto his hands and knees, and is panting with exertion. 

“Jongin!” Minho makes his way to Jongin and kneels down. “Are you okay?” Jongin only groans again and slams his gloved fist against the cold, hard ice in frustration. 

“Nini?” Taemin peers down at Jongin worriedly. “Are you hurt?” Jongin sits up, digging his heels into the ice and propping his arms up on his bent knees. He shakes his head no. 

“Here--” Taemin proffers a hand, and Jongin gently takes it, pushing himself up. 

“So sorry, sunbae,” Jongin apologizes immediately. “It was your right-of-way, I shouldn’t have been there.” Taemin throws him a look. 

“What are you talking about? You were _in the air_ , you couldn’t possibly have moved.” And with that, Taemin glides away, not one for words during valuable practice time. 

“Are you sure you’re okay?” Minho asks again, swatting Jongin’s hair to get snow flurries out of it. Jongin shakes his head a little to get rid of the remaining snow. 

“I’m fine. Just winded,” Jongin sighs. “I keep getting in everyone’s way today.” 

“I noticed,” Minho laughs. “And we’re sorry. If it makes you feel better, we were all that person once.” 

“I know you guys don’t do it on purpose.” Jongin strokes a little to keep up with Minho as they circle the ice. “It’s usually--” Taemin flies past them for another Quad Loop attempt, and Minho crowds Jongin up against the boards to protect both of them. “Toldya. It’s usually not this bad. I’m having some sort of cursed practice today.” 

“Just don’t jump,” Minho suggests. “Work on some spins in the middle. You can always come back in the afternoon if you’re not satisfied with what you did this morning.” 

“Maybe.” Minho drapes an arm around Jongin’s shoulders and squeezes lightly in encouragement before skating off. 

\--

It always makes Yixing’s day when he checks his phone after practice and sees that Baekhyun has left him a few text messages. He pulls at the laces of his skate absentmindedly with one hand, untying them slowly while his eyes are fixated on his phone. 

[Baek]

♡

How was practice, cutie? 

[Yixing]

Good :)

[Baek]

No flutzes on your Flips today? 

Yixing can’t help the sudden burst of laughter that slips out of him, causing the rest of the locker room to glance over at him. 

“Sorry,” Yixing apologizes, still laughing. 

“Share,” Jongin urges, leaning over to peek at Yixing’s phone. “What’s so funny?” Yixing tilts his screen so that Jongin can read, motioning to Baekhyun’s last text message. Jongin dissolves into laughter as well. 

“Oi, oi, that’s not fair,” Taemin reaches out to tug at Jongin’s jacket. “Tell me what’s so funny.” Jongin only laughs harder with Yixing. 

“Stop keeping secrets!” Sehun whines, getting up from his side to read Yixing’s text. 

“Not a secret,” Jongin gasps for air, clapping his feet together as well and collapsing into Yixing’s side. “So--” he finally calms himself down enough to explain. “Baek asked Xing how practice was,” his explanation is cut off by uncontrollable giggles. “And then he asked if Yixing had flutzed his Flip.” Jongin clutches onto Yixing while the entire locker room bursts into laughter. Sehun, who had just stood up, slams the locker room door with a fist as he collapses to his knees in hysterics. 

“Flutzing a Flip,” Jinki is the first to somewhat recover, wiping tears from his eyes. “Oh my god. That’s so cute.” 

“It is cute,” Yixing agrees, still holding onto Jongin who has nearly slid off the bench from laughter. “So cute.” 

“At least he’s trying.” Taemin sits upright from having slumped onto Minho. “He just wants to impress you.” 

“ _I’m_ impressed,” Jongin gasps, going into another round of laughter. “Aw, man, I’m gonna tease him for _years_ about this one.” Yixing finally turns his attention back to his text conversation when Jongin pulls himself together enough to sit upright. 

[Yixing]

There is no thing as Flutzing a Flip ><

Flutzing is turning _Lutz_ into Flip because instead of outside edge takeoff, you change to inside edge. 

[Baek]

Wait f

I sound so stupid

[Yixing]

No

But it was cute~

I laugh a lot at that. 

[Baek]

:V cut me some slack, i’m not a skater okay

[Yixing]

Yes, it is fine

You are sooooo funny 

[Baek]

-.-

[Yixing]

♡

Cute, baobei

没事的--it is okay. 

[Baek]

Hmph

So I guess you didn’t Flutz any Flips. 

[Yixing]

No :3

I did not 

I do not have Flutz problem, either. Sehun Flutz a lot, but not me. 

[Baek]

Cause you’re the best skater ♡

And the cutest :3

[Yixing]

Ahhhh ><

[Baek]

It’s true!

[Yixing]

Then you cutest gamer

[Baek]

Oh sweetheart, I _wish,_ but I think you’re the cutest gamer ;)

[Yixing]

I am not gamer -.-

[Baek]

A few more ~~dates~~ lessons from me, and you could be

Just sayin… practice makes perfect 

[Yixing]

OK with me :D 

More kisses when you win. 

Practice make perfect, right?

[Baek]

O-oh 

Heh :3

Do I get kisses if I win LCK Spring on the 13th?

[Yixing]

Maybe something bigger.

[Baek]

ZHANG YIXING

O_o

I _KNOW_ YOU DIDN’T JUST MAKE A DICK JOKE

[Yixing]

不是故意的。。。

Not on purpose

hehe

[Baek]

Well, now I’m curious ;) 

[Yixing]

怎么办。。。

Ah… 

What do I do… ><

[Baek]

Heh ;) 

No but hyung

If I win, I have a request.

[Yixing]

Yeah?

[Baek]

Don’t look at anyone else anymore.

Just me. 

[Yixing]

宝贝，我的眼睛里只有你。

[Baek]

Are… 

Are you gonna translate that, or am I gonna have to google it?

…Hyung?

\--

“Nini,” Taemin looks over at Jongin, who’s still laughing quietly to himself about Baekhyun’s comment. When Jongin meets Taemin’s eyes, the mirth in his own is reflected in Taemin’s. 

“It’s _so funny,_ ” Jongin squeezes his eyes shut, trying to hold in his laughter. Taemin slowly dissolves into giggles as well since Jongin’s amusement seems to be contagious. “A Flip Flutz.” 

“Okay, technically… technically it’s possible to turn a Flip into a Lutz, right?” Taemin asks in between laughter.

 _“What?!”_ Jongin’s hysterics are renewed. “Explain.” He presses his hands to his face. “Ah, my cheeks hurt from laughing.” 

“If you’re on an inside edge for the Flip, you _could_ theoretically change edge at the last minute and make it a Lutz,” Taemin offers. “I mean, I don’t know why you _would,_ but it’s plausible?” 

“Mmmaybe.” Jongin finally calms down. “Wow, now I wanna try that.” 

“Me, too. Could be fun--a Flip entrance into a Lutz.” Taemin bends over to take his skates off. “OH--I know I skated off quickly while I was on the ice, but are you really okay?” Taemin reaches over and Jongin jolts at the feeling of skin brushing skin when Taemin’s hands gently take one of his own. “You’re not hurt, are you? That was a really bad fall you took.” 

“I’m fine,” Jongin breathes as Taemin turns his hand over to inspect his palm. “Seriously, sunbae.” 

“You sure? I felt your hands come up right as I hit you,” Taemin reaches for Jongin’s other hand now. “Your hands are always so cold,” he murmurs more as a side note than anything else. 

“Yeah, they--they get really cold,” Jongin mumbles, feeling his cheeks heat up as Taemin finishes checking over his hands but doesn’t let go, instead cupping both of his tiny ones around Jongin’s to warm them up. _Smol hands,_ Jongin’s brain supplies giddily. _Smol hands, pretty boy, squishy cheeks--_

“That’s twice I’ve run into you now within just a couple of months,” Taemin sighs. 

“Oh, no, sunbae--it was my fault,” Jongin shakes his head profusely when Taemin’s brows furrow together with worry. _Look how sad he looks,_ Jongin scolds himself. _You’ve made him all depressed._ “I should’ve been looking where I was going,” he apologizes.

“In the air? Pretty sure not even Nathan Chen can pull that off.” Taemin raises an appraising eyebrow. 

“What were you going into?” Jongin inquires. 

“Lutz. Quad Lutz. So I was skating forwards, and I saw you go into your Loop,” Taemin tells Jongin, releasing his hands to mimic their positions in the air. “So I thought I’d just avoid you by cutting my pattern a little bit short.” 

“Ohhh,” Jongin nods. “But my landing curved into your pattern.” 

“Yeah, so I hit you at full speed and landed on my hands.” 

“Sunbae!” Without thinking, Jongin reaches for Taemin’s hands and examines his palms. The rush that comes from holding Taemin’s hands pales in comparison to his anxiety. “My impact was nothing in comparison to yours, then!” 

“Where did you land?” 

“My hip.” A sudden poke in his side makes Jongin yelp. He looks up to see Taemin looking mischievous as ever, a hint of a sly smile showing as he reaches to poke Jongin again. 

“Don’t!” Jongin laughs at the feeling, reaching for Taemin’s wrist to prevent another attack. 

“Are you ticklish?” 

“No,” Jongin vehemently denies it, but still shrinks back, grasping Taemin’s hands and pushing him away. “Don’t,” Jongin’s laughter spills out now along with Taemin’s while they wrestle. 

“Gosh, get a room,” Sehun calls sarcastically from across the locker room, and Jongin just wants to _die_ when Taemin looks at Jongin and _winks._

“But you didn’t hurt your hip, right?” Taemin lets up on his teasing, and Jongin reluctantly lets his soft, warm hand go. 

“No, I’m okay.” 

“Still,” Taemin says softly, now wiping his blades down. “I should’ve been more careful. I’m sorry.” 

“Please don’t apologize,” Jongin insists. God, nothing is worse than seeing Taemin look like a kicked puppy. “You didn’t do anything wrong.” 

“Do you have any plans after practice?” Taemin asks thoughtfully. Jongin looks at him in surprise. 

“N-no…?” 

“Do you wanna get lunch with me, then?” 

_“Yes._ ” The words are out of Jongin’s mouth before he even processes what’s happening. Then his brain connects his agreement to the question, and it feels like Taemin has just run him over _again_ . “Uhhhh’nnNNN--” Jongin claps his hand over his mouth to hide the huge smile that just spread across his face. _Lunch_? With Taemin? He has died and gone to heaven. That’s the only explanation. “Yeah,” Jongin gives up hiding his happiness. It’s shining through his eyes anyways. “That’d be fun.” 

“Kayyy,” Taemin’s equally eager smile makes his cheeks glow, and Jongin just barely stops himself from reaching out to poke them. “It’s on me,” he adds. 

“No,” Jongin shakes his head at this. “You don’t have to do that, sunbae, I--” _Just lunch with you is a dream, it’s more than enough--_

“I insist,” Taemin laughs a little. “If you don’t want me to feel guilty anymore, you’ll agree. I just want an opportunity to make it up to you.” He’s got the _cutest_ pout on his face, as if he knows it’ll win Jongin over in a heartbeat. If Jongin were alone, he would’ve clutched his chest and cried by now. He’s being attacked. This is so unfair. 

“Okay,” he agrees helplessly. “Th-thank you.” Taemin waves his farewell to the locker room, then gestures for Jongin to go first. 

“After you, then.” 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Loooonnggggg update this time, hope you guys don't mind XD  
> It actually took quite a bit of deleting and fussing to finally get this chapter how Aranee and I wanted it to go, but we're REALLY happy with how it turned out. I hope you all liked it as well!  
> What can I say, the entire fic is honestly just about Taemin running Jongin over. And it's not all that uncommon during practices ;)  
> I couldn't find a better co-writer even if I tried really, *really* hard. Thank you to Aranee for sticking with me through the process (even though you like mayo -.-) 爱你!
> 
> ~Don't ask me what the Chinese says, go Google it like Baek did~  
> Loving all the comments that always come flooding into my inbox with every update! You guys are the absolute BEST. You're the reason Aranee and I keep writing this so enthusiastically. Thank you, thank you, thank you. 
> 
> This AN is gonna end up as long as the update so I'll stop here :3


	12. Chapter 12

“Where are we going?” Jongin asks, trying to be as casual as possible even when his heart is racing a mile a minute. It takes an immense effort to get himself to calm down slightly.  _ It’s just lunch, Jongin,  _ he placates himself mentally.  _ Just lunch with a teammate. No big deal. You get lunch with Yixing-hyung all the time.  _

_ Yixing-hyung doesn’t have squishy cheeks and a cute laugh,  _ the whipped part of his brain retorts. Luckily, Taemin’s cheerful reply cuts through Jongin’s internal argument. 

“My favorite restaurant. Do you like beef?” 

“Of course,” Jongin laughs. All food is amazing, especially when his diet isn’t limited to chicken breast and salads during off season. “Anything works.” 

“Yeah, this place has really great braised beef short ribs,” Taemin shares enthusiastically. “It’s not far from the rink, actually--like a ten-minute walk? Do you mind?” 

“Not at all.” Jongin shoves his hands into his pockets. “I can’t believe I’ve never found this place if it’s so close to the rink,” Jongin remarks. “But then again, I haven’t lived in the area for all that long, and I really only visit the supermarket and a few other places for food since we’re almost always dieting.” 

“Ah, yeah. Off season is really great,” Taemin agrees with a small laugh. “But we gotta make sure we don’t gain too much weight, cause dropping it again is always a pain.” 

“For sure.”

“Where did you train before Kibum?” Taemin asks curiously. 

“Uh--Suncheon.” Jongin shrugs, and Taemin nods. “Switched to Kibum last year when my improvement stagnated.” 

“Ahh, I see. Yeah, Kibum’s great. I’ve been with him since I was 14,” Taemin shares. 

“Oh, so…so your first Nationals, right?” 

“Yep, I’ve made every Nationals appearance with him.”

“Wait,” Jongin realizes something. “Sehun said you guys moved to Seoul when he was 13. So you were 14… 15 ish?” When Taemin nods, Jongin looks at him in shock. “Does that mean you moved away from home when you were THAT young?” 

“My mother came every once in a while and often stayed for a few weeks,” Taemin explains. “She still does, sometimes. And I always had Jonghyun-hyung and the other hyungs.” The skater laughs. “We might joke about it a lot, but Jjong-hyung really IS like my second mother. He practically raised me.” 

“Ah, yeah… I know you guys are really close. No wonder then,” Jongin shakes his head in disbelief. He can’t imagine what it would be like to be forced to become so independent and recognized at such a young age. At least Sehun’s entire family had moved with him. But Taemin… Jongin knows of many other world-renowned skaters and even skaters who were lesser known than himself, who had also made tough sacrifices to their childhood and family in order to continue training, but every story of diligence and perseverance that he hears always shakes him to his core. 

“Here it is,” Taemin says suddenly, reaching out to grab Jongin by the arm as he almost walks past it. 

“Oh--that was a short walk.” He hadn’t realized how fast they had arrived; the conversation had moved so easily that Jongin didn’t even have time to be nervous. 

“Yeah. This is my second time coming here this week, actually,” Taemin holds the door open for Jongin, who murmurs a word of thanks. “Jjong-hyung and I came for his birthday a few days ago.” 

“Oh!” Jongin claps a hand to his mouth. “Oh no, I totally forgot about his birthday,” Jongin laments. “I feel so bad, I didn’t even wish him a happy belated one when he visited yesterday…” 

“No worries. He’ll definitely understand,” Taemin shrugs and smiles. “He’s not big on making a huge deal out of himself.” 

“That’s not an excuse for me to have forgotten,” Jongin grumbles as they’re led to a small table next to the window. The waitress passes them a menu each, then they’re left alone. Jongin steals a peek at Taemin from over his menu. Walking and talking was one thing, but now, when Jongin’s seated directly across from ~~the prettiest boy in the universe~~ his teammate, his heart begins to thump frantically again. Taemin glances up and meets Jongin’s eyes, smiling when Jongin flinches and blushes at being caught staring.

“Wh--which one’s your favorite, sunbae?” Jongin murmurs, lowering his eyes back down to the menu in front of him. 

“This one.” Taemin reaches over and lowers Jongin’s menu, pointing out the braised beef short ribs. “These are good too, though,” Taemin’s finger skims down the restaurant’s selection of beef. “Anything is good here, actually.” 

“I see.” 

“And you don’t have to call me sunbae.” Taemin says suddenly. Jongin looks up at him in surprise. “Just hyung is okay.” Biting his lip nervously, Jongin considers his next words. While he’s beyond ecstatic that Taemin considers himself to be close enough with Jongin to offer him ‘hyung’, the little part in his brain that’s preening about being on a lunch date with Taemin is feeling extra brave today. And Jongin wants so badly to be closer to Taemin than on just a hyung-dongsaeng relationship.  _ After all, _ Jongin tells himself in an effort to gather courage to voice these actual thoughts,  _ Taemin and I are in the same school year.  _ The two aren’t even a year apart, and Jongin had started school early because he was born in January. So--

“Not that I’m ungrateful or anything, but c-could I speak… informally to you?” Jongin squeaks out, then immediately regrets it as Taemin’s face changes from pleasant to surprised, then something along the lines of polite disinclination. 

“I know that in school we’re the same year,” Taemin begins, “but the other ‘00 liners and I had always established formality by birth year instead of school year. And since you’re ‘01, I had assumed that you should regard me as ‘hyung’.” There’s no dislike in his voice, just a courteous explanation of his thoughts, made awkward by Jongin’s request. And normally, Jongin would immediately back down, murmur an apology, and happily call Taemin ‘hyung’ as requested. But Jongin is either crushing  _ extra  _ hard or just  _ extremely  _ brave today, because he stutters through his explanation for his appeal. 

“Can’t we be same-age friends?” Jongin rushes out, feeling his cheeks heat up. “I-I’m less than a year younger than you, and we--we see each other everyday and train together… e-even when we weren’t talking that much we were still… uhh… still, you know… comfortable and everything. And--now that we’re talking and hanging out and everything, I just… I want to--to get closer with you. I mean no disrespect,” Jongin murmurs, anxiously jiggling his leg under the table. “I just thought, maybe, since we’re the same school year, and we--we don’t have  _ that  _ big of an age difference…” Taemin scans the embarrassed, nervous boy across from him carefully. Jongin looks at him with hopeful, beseeching eyes, glimmering with genuinity and massive respect for both his profession and character. When Taemin meets Jongin’s gaze again while twisting his mouth to the side as he internally debates Jongin’s explanation, Jongin’s face quickly loses its bright confidence. 

“I--” Jongin begins to apologize. 

“It’s alright.” Taemin cuts him off and fixes him with a kind smile. “I don’t have any same-age friends at the rink, and I think… that might be nice.” 

“So…” Jongin can hardly believe it. 

“You can talk to me informally.” Taemin allows it. Jongin is first filled with excitement, and then extreme nervousness. He wants to try it out, but now, he’s not even sure how to speak. 

“Th-thank you,” Jongin speaks softly, barely audible above the ambient noise of other patrons in the restaurant. “Taemin-ah.” They stare at each other for a second before Taemin bursts into laughter. Jongin covers his face with his hands in shy happiness. 

“Ahhh, so awkward,” Taemin hides his smile behind the back of his hand. “It’s okay. I have to get used to it as well.” Jongin laughs adorably, too, then scrunches up his nose and feels over the moon. “Anyways, are you ready to order?” 

\--

“What do you do outside of skating?” Jongin asks. The time has just flown by, and even though both of them are practically done eating, the conversation hasn’t really lulled, despite Jongin’s occasional stuttering and blushing. Taemin perks up. 

“I like movies! And shows. They’re my guilty pleasure. What about you?”

“Same. That, or legos and sleeping.” Jongin smiles. “It seems as if my entire lifestyle revolves around skating, you know?” Taemin nods enthusiastically at this, and Jongin continues. “Even if I’m not at the rink, I’m busy thinking about my diet, working out, or running. So whenever I have some down time and I don’t have to study, my plan of action is inaction. I choose to stay as still as I possibly can.” Taemin bursts into tinkling laughter at this. 

“SAME, same! Breathing is a form of exercise, too, you know.” 

“Yes!” Jongin claps his hands together, giggling. “What are you currently watching?” 

“Mmmm… I’m gonna go home tonight and finish watching ‘Mission Impossible’, Taemin muses. “I really love action and horror--” 

“Ah, I LOVE horror!” 

“Right?!” Taemin smiles, and Jongin fixates on his impossibly soft cheeks and cute crescent-shaped eyes. “It’s so fun.” 

“Jongdae and Chanyeol hate horror,” Jongin muses. “We watched ‘Annabelle’ together--you know, the one about the doll? I thought it was cute, but Jongdae kept screaming and trying to climb on top of me while we were watching. And then Chanyeol threw a shoe at me when I said it was wholesome.” 

“It must be fun to have roommates,” Taemin remarks after he re-emerges from his fit of laughter from the story.

“Don’t you live with Jjong-hyung?” Jongin inquires.

“Are you kidding? That’s like living with my mother.” Taemin rolls his eyes affectionately. “Oh, but I liked ‘Annabelle’, too. Also ‘The Conjuring?’ Have you watched that?” Jongin murmurs affirmation. “That one was pretty good.” 

“A fun and healing movie,” Jongin agrees. 

“Exactly! I didn’t see what was so terrifying about it.” Taemin finishes off his ribs just as Jongin spoons up the last mouthful of his rice. “So yeah,” Taemin mumbles, swallowing. “I’ve had a lot more free time these days. It’s nice to just lay back and relax a little more than usual. At least until May.” 

“Things will pick up soon again,” Jongin agrees. “But this is a nice atmosphere.” 

“It is,” Taemin agrees. “I had fun.” Jongin shyly murmurs likewise while Taemin pays for their meal--much to Jongin’s chagrin, even though that had been the whole point of this lunch in the first place--then they take their time wandering back to the rink. Taemin waves to Jongin cheerily when they recollect their bags from the locker room and part ways. 

“I’ll see you tomorrow?” 

“Bright and early,” Jongin smiles. “‘Bye, Taemin-ah.” Taemin laughs at the informality again, but takes it into stride. 

“See you, Nini.”

\--

“Ah, look who’s here,” Minho crows when Sehun enters the locker room, standing up to pull the younger into a bone-crushing hug. “Happy birthday, munchkin!” 

“WHAT did you just call me?” Sehun squawks indignantly. 

“Little munchkin.” Minho steps back and pats Sehun on the head. “How does it feel being 18?” Sehun gags. 

“That’s disgusting. Please don’t ever call me that again.” 

“Oh, look at him, 18 and all grown up,” Jinki catches the last of Sehun’s words as he traipses in through the door with Yixing, Taemin, and Jongin trailing behind him, slightly red-faced and short of breath from their run. “Just so you’re aware, you’re not a day over 16 in my eyes.” 

“Happy birthday, Sehun!” Jongin envelops him in a hug from behind. All too late, Sehun realizes it’s a trap, and flails wildly as Jinki approaches him from the front while Jongin’s arms tighten around his body. 

“Fuckers,” Sehun growls, but he can’t help the yelp of laughter and pain that escapes him when Jinki flicks him hard on the forehead. “OW!” 

“No pain, no gain.” Jongin releases him and runs away to hide behind Taemin before Sehun can kick his ass for holding him down. Taemin laughs and obliges, reaching behind him to tug Jongin closer to him. Sehun sticks his tongue out at Jongin while Yixing offers a light hug to Sehun.

“So what’s munch--” 

“DON’T CALL ME THAT!” 

“Whatcha planning on doing after practice today?” Minho inquires as he slides a foot into his new skates. 

“Jun’s gonna pick me up and we’re going to get lunch together,” Sehun shares happily. “Then he said he’ll take me to Han river and let me stay the night.” 

“Ooohhhh,” Jongin calls playfully. “Staying the night? So scandalous, Sehunnie.” 

“Oh, shush.” Sehun shares a laugh with Jongin, who’s the only one who knows about Junmyeon’s little vow. 

“Sounds fun. At least, more fun than I’ll be having today,” Minho looks forlornly at his stiff new skates, then begins lacing them up tightly. 

“I’m looking forward to watching you do your push-ups,” Jinki snickers when Sehun groans. 

“18 shouldn’t be that bad, right?” Sehun smiles at the mention of their skating team’s birthday tradition. 

“Why don’t you tell me?” Jinki teases. 

The good mood in the locker room transfers to practice, where Sehun’s promptly greeted by his coaches as well. 

“Happy birthday. You gonna stop being such a little brat now?” Kibum affectionately offers a gruff one-armed hug to Sehun. 

“No, Coach.” Sehun smiles crescent-eyed at his long-time coach, who rolls his eyes resignedly. 

“I thought not. Go skate. How’re your new skates? Feeling better?” 

“Yeah. I think I can do jump combinations today.” 

“Kay, we’ll try some with Kyungsoo in twenty minutes.” Kibum waves Sehun off.

\-- 

“Okay, okay,” Kibum calls when practice is over. “Sehun, get over here.” Everyone shuffles to make a big half-circle around the youngest skater, and Kibum holds his hand out for Sehun’s gloves. “Drop and give me 18, birthday boy.” 

“The ice is so cold,” Sehun whines, already wincing as he digs his toe picks into the ice and gingerly places his bare hands on the slippery surface. 

“1! 2, 3, 4, 5, 6…” Everyone surrounding him counts his push-ups, cheering as Sehun finishes his 18th and immediately stands up, cupping his cold hands to himself in agony. 

“You made handprints in the ice,” Jongin squats down and places his own hands in the melted ice in the shape of Sehun’s hands. “Geez, your hands are huge.” 

“Did you know that the length of your ring finger is statistically correlated to d--” Jinki wacks Sehun upside the head before he can finish his sentence. “Ow!” Minho skates over and peers at the aforementioned handprints before comparing them with his own. 

“Yah, Sehun, your hands are almost the same size as mine.” 

“Taemin-ah,” Jongin calls shyly. “Compare hand sizes with Sehun as well.” Taemin acquiesces, and Jongin bursts into delighted laughter. “Your hands are SO SMALL!” Taemin only giggles and flicks drops of melted ice-water at Jongin.

“Hold on--did you just call him ‘Taemin-ah’?” Sehun interrupts, narrowing his eyes at Jongin as an evil grin plays at the corner of his mouth. Jongin looks up to see all four of the other skaters staring at them. Taemin bites his lip and attempts to hide his laughter while Jongin stutters. 

“U-uh--” 

“Oh, what happened to sunbae?” Jinki pulls Jongin’s ear playfully. 

“Or even hyung?” Sehun teases. “We’re skipping stones today, are we?” 

“Stooppp.” 

“He’s older than you, show some respect.” 

“Notthatmucholder,” Jongin murmurs to his skates, turning pink. 

“I’m dying to hear this story,” Sehun continues, knowing full well that Jongin is also dying of embarrassment. He skates around Jongin slowly, imitating detective Sherlock. “Hmm… wonder how that happened.” 

“Sehunnnn--” 

“Is ‘Taemin-ah’ okay with it?” 

“You don’t get a pass,” Taemin deadpans to Sehun, standing up and nudging Jongin gently. “He’s an early birthday, so I let him. It’s cool.” 

“It is freezing,” Yixing corrects; the figure of speech having gone straight over his head. Taemin ducks his chin into the turned up collar of his jacket to hide his smile. 

“Yes, it’s definitely cold.” At this, Jongin loosens up a little and lets out a small, nervous laugh, glancing gratefully at Taemin for saving him from the onslaught of teasing.

“18 pushups for turning 18 years old.” Kibum presents Sehun with a small box of six gourmet cupcakes that the skaters always receive from Kibum on their birthdays. “Happy birthday, Sehun. “Work hard this year, okay?” 

“Thank you, Coach!” Sehun bows low and accepts his gloves back. In the locker room, Sehun distributes cupcakes, cold hands are placed on Jinki’s neck, and Junmyeon makes his appearance, giving Sehun a long hug and peck on the cheek. 

“Happy birthday, Sehunnie,” Jongin calls as Sehun packs up to leave. The others echo him, and Sehun waves. 

“Thanks, everyone. See you tomorrow.” 

“Oh, LCK finals are tomorrow,” Jongin murmurs suddenly, as if he had just remembered. Yixing glances up at the change of discourse. 

“Yes,” Yixing agrees, and Jongin turns to look at him. 

“I assume you’ll be watching?” When Yixing nods, Jongin gives him a knowing smile. “You know Baek actually offered to get us backstage tickets a while back,” he says casually. At this, Yixing’s eyes widen incredulously, but Jongin doesn’t notice; his attention is on fumbling with the questionable knot in his skate lace. “But--we--turned him down,” Jongin mumbles, wincing as he picks at the entanglement. 

_ “What?!”  _ Yixing’s jaw goes slack. 

“Yea, Jongdae was all like, ‘Baek, I love you to death, but I prefer my couch.’ And Chanyeol just rolled with it, so I did, too. None of us follow League as extensively as you do anyways.” Jongin glances back up to take in Yixing’s indignant stare. “What?” 

_ “I take personal offense to that!”  _ Yixing splutters in Chinese, too incensed to bother trying to articulate Korean. 

“Huh?” Jongin looks confused while Yixing fumes next to him. 

_ “Why would you turn down backstage tickets to the biggest LoL stage in Korea? It’s in Seoul this year, too! Do you know how many people would die to get their hands on that opportunity? Do you know how a m a z i n g--”  _

“Xing-hyung, you can yell at me all you want, but I have no idea what you’re saying.” Jongin offers him a wry smile. Yixing huffs and flops back down on the bench. 

“I can’t believe you turn him down.” 

“To be fair, the couch IS more comfortable. I’m always surprised when Jongdae’s enthusiastic about coming to skating competitions,” Jongin shrugs. “He’s almost as bad as your boyfriend about leaving the house.” 

“Not my boyfriend,” Yixing murmurs while red creeps up his neck.  _ Not yet.  _

“Oh, gimme a break.” Jongin rolls his eyes. “Anyways, feel free to drop by if you wanna watch together.” 

“Oh--I can?” Yixing perks up. 

“‘Course! You can explain to us what’s happening.” Jongin beams. 

“Are you sure? I do not want to, uhm, interrupt--” 

“Don’t worry, the only thing you’ll be interrupting is Jongdae’s constant jabbering. Which makes you a godsend.” 

\--

The next day, Jongin ends up getting lunch with Yixing after their morning group practice. Afterwards they meander their way back to the rink for a completely unproductive three-hour afternoon session in order to kill some time before the game begins. At some point, both of them tire of practicing spins and start dancing girl group dances in the middle of the ice. Then they compete to see who can do the most Double Axels in a row (Jongin loses, which is fair considering Yixing’s Axels are his best jump) before taking the bus back to Jongin’s apartment. Yixing-hyung is fun to hang out with, Jongin thinks as they exchange amiable conversation about anything and everything. The Chinese skater is easygoing and pretty quiet most of the time, but he’s one of the funniest people that Jongin knows, even if he doesn’t mean to crack a joke. Out of all the Senior-level skaters, Jongin’s most comfortable with being around Yixing. 

“Xing-hyung is with me,” Jongin announces as a form of greeting when the pair traipse into the apartment. 

“Oh, fantastic. A live commentator from the comfort of my home.” Jongdae comes into view when the pair toe off their shoes and dump their skating bags and suitcases in front of the door where they’ll definitely be tripped over at one point or another. 

“Cannot believe you give up backstage pass,” are Yixing’s first words to the economics student. Jongdae offers him a cheeky grin. 

“Maybe if you’d stepped in the picture sooner, I would’ve offered them to you. Don’t worry though,” Jongdae raises a singular eyebrow, “he’ll have more events, and now he’ll offer backstage to you all the time.” This being pointed out, Yixing claps a hand to his mouth. He’d never even considered asking Baekhyun to do anything of the sort for him, but knowing the gamer… Yixing’s overwhelmed for just a second with intense feelings of affection and excitement.

“Oh. Right.” Jongdae chuckles at Yixing’s sudden epiphany and shambles into the living room to crowd up against Chanyeol for the sole purpose of annoying his roommate. 

“Have a seat, don’t be shy,” Jongin nudges Yixing. “I swear, you spend every other weekend here, and you still act like it’s your first time here every time…” 

“Just polite,” Yixing mumbles, collapsing into the armchair which he’d shared with Baekhyun when they had all watched Worlds together. Chanyeol fumbles with the live stream while Jongdae munches on pretzels next to his ear. 

“Hyung, water? Juice?” Jongin calls from the fridge. 

“Water,” Jongdae answers just as Yixing makes to answer. Jongin ignores Jongdae.

“Not you. Yixing-hyung, water? Juice?” 

“Water, please.” 

“WHAT kind of dongsaeng…” Jongdae grumbles while Yixing chuckles. Jongin comes back, precariously holding on to three glasses of water. 

“WHAT kind of dongsaeng?” Jongin snaps, extending one of the cups to Yixing. 

“The best,” Jongdae acquiesces meekly. 

“Thought so.” Jongin settles down on the couch a safe distance away from his loud roommates and on the side closest to Yixing. 

“They playing against Griffin,” Yixing murmurs when Chanyeol finally finds the livestream. “Baek said he not worry, but it is interesting because his team lost to Griffin twice already in group stage.” A small smile creeps onto his face when the camera pans to Baekhyun. Normally, Kyoong would’ve offered a coy smile and a wink, but today his eyes are focused and intense. Yixing’s heart can’t take it.  _ “Cute,”  _ he whispers in Mandarin. 

“As always, I’m very surprised at how nicely Baek cleans up,” Chanyeol comments. Yixing decides not to comment on that one; Baekhyun looks adorable all the time to him. 

“Do you guys know anything about League?” 

“Baek’s explained the basics a couple of times before,” Jongin shrugs. “So yeah, we know the general gist of it. He’s playing Ryze, right?” 

“Yes.” Yixing nods. “Oh--OH!” He claps a hand to his mouth as all five of Griffin go in on SKT’s support, “Mata”, and get first blood not even a minute into the game.

“Bro, meeeeee.” Jongdae pops a pretzel into his mouth. “That was unfortunate.” 

“Griffin play so aggressive today.” Yixing sighs along with the rest of the SKT fans. “Rip Mata.” As the game continues, Yixing explains each team’s tactics and strategies as best he can. While the three roommates aren’t nearly as invested in the game as Yixing, Jongin still finds himself becoming quite nervous for his gamer friend since SKT has been at a turret and kill disadvantage for most of the game. 

“They need team fight,” Yixing is saying, before it actually happens 35 minutes into the game--Mata, Khan, and Kyoong get a kill each, which turns the tables for SKT.

“Hyung, your Korean’s gotten a lot better,” Jongin murmurs when the excitement has settled down a bit. 

“Thank. Griffin going in to steal Elder Drake, OH SHIT THEYGOTIT--” Yixing stumbles over words in his excitement. “KYOONG KILLS SWORD--SKT PICK UP KILLS--Another kill for Kyoong, good boy--only one member alive on Griffin and SKT already at Nexus.” 

“HOLY SHIT!” Jongin screeches in excitement when the Ezreal ult from SKT’s Teddy flies over the map, stopping Griffin’s Chovy from recalling back to base in order to defend against losing the entire game. “YOOOOOOOOO!”

“Wait, what happened?” Jongdae looks to Yixing who’s out of his seat, jumping up and down with Jongin. Chanyeol flails wildly as he bursts into laughter, smacking Jongdae on the shoulder. 

“Even I understood. The little blue thing around Chovy?” Chanyeol makes a little circle in the air. 

“Yeah, recall, to go back to base.” 

“Yes. But then Teddy ult’ed and cut off his recall,” Chanyeol explains to a confused Jongdae. “And it takes, what, 7 or 8 seconds to go back to base? So it bought SKT enough time to get the Nexus and win.” 

“So they won?” 

“Yep!” Jongin looks over his shoulder from where he’s mirroring Yixing’s TWICE dance. 

“The whole thing?” Jongdae makes a wide arc in the air with both of his hands. 

“Best-of-five,” Yixing replies cheerfully, now dancing to Momoland. “So maybe four more.” 

“What the fuck are you two doing?” Jongdae gapes at the two skaters, happily walking through ice dance patterns in lieu of conventional celebratory actions.

“What does it look like?” Jongin twirls Yixing around, leading him in a very impromptu Argentine Tango, and pulls his thigh up just as Yixing throws his head back dramatically. “We’re practicing for Beijing 2022.” Chanyeol and Jongdae exchange exasperated glances at each other. 

_ Skaters.  _

_ They’re a different breed.  _

\--

The second game is hardly a game, as Kyoong and Teddy pick up kill after kill and Yixing gushes about how Kyoong does so much damage that he manages to survive a 4v1 with a little help from his teammates. 

“Griffin falling apart,” Yixing snorts, leaning back in the armchair complacently. 

“Should we order pizza?” Jongin inquires when Chanyeol’s stomach grumbles. “What’s everyone in the mood for?” 

“Bulgogi pizza!” Jongdae cheers while Yixing cheers for SKT’s easy second win. 

“Sounds good,” Jongin murmurs, scrolling through his phone. “Yo, hyung, does that work?” 

“Yep.” Yixing pulls out his phone too, and sends a text message to Baekhyun even though he knows the gamer probably won’t see it until he finishes playing. 

[Yixing]

Baobei fighting~

♡♡♡♡♡

“Kay, I ordered pizza, it’ll be here soon,” Jongin announces, then glances down in surprise as he gets a text notification. “Oh--” 

[Taemin]

img.4044 

I was watching this

It’s not good…ㅠㅠ

[Jongin]

:((( that’s unfortunate

[Taemin]

Wasn’t interesting 

So many plot holes… 

And the acting was terrible ㅠㅠ

[Jongin]

I’ll remind myself to stay away from it ><

[Taemin]

I’m watching One Piece now~ 

[Jongin]

:OOOO

OMG

I--

[Taemin]

ㅋㅋㅋㅋ

Have you watched it?

[Jongin]

No but I LOVE anime

“Nini, third game is starting,” Yixing says mildly. 

“Ok.” Jongin barely glances up from his phone; he’s pretty sure even if Baekhyun loses the third game, it wouldn’t be enough to wipe the huge grin plastered on his face. “Ah, must be Taemin.” Yixing teases and Jongin nods excitedly. “Never mind then.” 

[Taemin]

Yuri on Ice? 

[Jongin]

Fairly realistic, I rly liked it 

Viktor 12/10 hot

Yurio >>>>>>>> Yuri

[Taemin]

Yakov reminds me of Kibum ㅋㅋㅋ

Ah, I think Viktor looks better with long hair~

[Jongin]

ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ

They’re SO similar!! 

And yea long hair viktor is superior

Except nobody would ever skate with hair that long in a ponytail :o

“Ahhhh, I should have known it would not be easy,” Yixing groans in the background. “Griffin turnaround this match, I swear…” 

“Are they losing?” Jongin murmurs to his phone. 

“SKT can still catch up, but Griffin playing much better this round than last time.” 

“Oh.” 

[Taemin]

What else have you watched? 

[Jongin]

Not many animes, lately I’ve been more into movies but I’ve watched some

Haikyuu, Parasyte, No Game No Life, Kuroshitsuji, SAO, ALO, GGO, Mirai Nikki, Re:Zero, etc.

[Taemin]

For movies, Howl’s Moving Castle is good~

[Jongin]

Oooh okie

I’ll look into it then

[Taemin]

6v6 

okay~

The doorbell rings and Jongdae nudges Jongin with his foot. 

“Lovebird, stop texting. Get the food.” 

“Stop,” Jongin bats Jongdae’s foot away. “Not a lovebird…” 

“Food! Get the food!” Jongdae chants, and Chanyeol joins in. 

“FOOD! FOOD! FOOD! FOOD! FOOD!” 

“I will personally evict you two,” Jongin groans, but stands up and pockets his phone. He trips over both skating bags opening the door. “Hi, thank you.” He accepts the pizza and bows slightly before nudging the door closed with a foot and making a wide berth around the skates this time. “Food is here.” Jongdae immediately takes one of the two cardboard boxes for himself and Chanyeol, but Yixing barely registers the slice of pizza that Jongin offers him.

“KYOONG! BAOBEI, AHHHHHH, SO, SO GOOD TO ME,” Yixing clutches his chest dramatically when Kyoong gets attacked by the enemy team but instead picks up two kills from Griffin. “YES!” 

“What did Baek do?” 

“I think he maybe turn game around if SKT can hold on to this,” Yixing accepts the pizza. “I should not eat this,” he adds as an afterthought, but he’s rather unconvincing since a quarter of it is already gone from a single bite.

“Calories are just Kibum’s way of preventing us from eating good food.” Jongin dismisses the thought. “If you don’t think about them, they don’t exist.” 

“Fair,” Jongdae concedes, even though he can inhale as much good food as he wants. He’s obnoxious with his freedom, too, especially during peak competition season. 

“Teddy playing SO GOOD,” Yixing mumbles around a mouthful. “They take the lead. Oh--WE WIN!” 

“Oh?” Jongin starts paying attention again. Between Khan’s triple knock-up and Teddy’s Ezreal play with Kyoong snatching one more kill for himself, the rest of the team has already entered Griffin’s base and takes the Nexus.

“WOOOOOOOO!” Jongdae cheers and claps. “We don’t have to watch five games!” 

“JONGDAE!” Chanyeol laughs so hard he spews out pizza bits all over the place. 

“Yeaaaa, Baekkie,” Jongin grins as the atmosphere in the apartment turns even more lighthearted. Yixing stands up and stretches, proudly watching the team of five jubilant boys celebrate their victory on the livestream. But he only has eyes for one of them, whose wide, radiant smile makes sparks fly for Yixing, even through the screen. 

\--

“Hey,” Jongin nudges Yixing at the boards the next day. “Baekhyun’s here.” 

“What?” Yixing spins towards the entrance of the rink, where Baekhyun’s leaning against the boards, cupping his face in both hands along the edge of the rink barrier, wistfully watching Yixing. He gives a small wave when Yixing turns towards him, and his smile grows as Yixing skates in his direction. Yixing holds his arms out wordlessly when he skids to a graceful stop; Baekhyun steps onto the threshold between the rubber mats and cold ice. 

“Babe, this isn’t gonna work,” Baekhyun laughs, indicating his shoes, but yelps in surprise when Yixing gathers him up into a cold, precious hug. “Oh!” His legs immediately come up and wrap around Yixing’s torso while he clings onto Yixing’s neck like a koala bear as Yixing sweeps him out onto the ice, cradled in his arms. Baekhyun laughs in delight as Yixing spins around, then carefully sets Baekhyun down on the ice to cup his face in both of his gloved hands. 

“Hey,” Baekhyun mumbles, cheeks squished by Yixing’s hands. 

“Baobei.” Yixing’s dimple deepens while he stares into Baekhyun’s eyes, lost in a bubble where it’s just him and this adorable, goofy gamer. Baekhyun gazes up at him just as adoringly, clutching on tight to the sides of Yixing’s Team China jacket so that he doesn’t accidentally slip. 

“I won,” Baekhyun tells him breathlessly, curving into the shape of Yixing’s body, pressing up tight against him wherever he can. 

“You won.” 

“So you can’t look at anyone else anymore.” Baekhyun tilts his head and offers a coy smile. 

“I do not want anyone else,” Yixing breathes, bending down to kiss Baekhyun. Baekhyun reaches up onto his tiptoes, and one of Yixing’s hands wraps securely around the younger’s waist to hold him steady. 

“ZHANG YIXING!” Kibum’s voice thunders through the entire rink furiously. “ARE YOU  _ SERIOUS  _ RIGHT NOW?!” Yixing’s eyes shoot open as he’s called back to his surroundings and he pulls away immediately, wide-eyed and  _ so _ repentant. Except Baekhyun stumbles and wobbles like a stranded baby penguin as Yixing skates away, so he has to shuffle forward to hold Baekhyun steady again while an  _ irate _ Kibum goes off on a tangent. 

“--HAVE YET TO SEE YOU WORK ON ANYTHING EXCEPT YOUR LUTZ AND YOU HAVE THE AUDACITY TO GO SNOGGING YOUR BOYFRIEND  _ ON THE ICE—“ _

“He’s not his boyfriend, Coach!” Jongin calls while Sehun wolf-whistles obnoxiously. 

“YES, I AM!!!” Baekhyun’s indignant screech echoes through the entire rink, and as mortified as Yixing is, Baekhyun’s declaration sweeps him right off his feet again. Thank god he’s so adept in skates. 

“FINALLY!” Minho swats Yixing’s back as he passes the couple. “Took long enough.” 

“My… boyfriend?” Yixing breathes, looking back to Baekhyun, who wraps his arms around the skater’s waist. 

“I won, and you promised. So I’m your boyfriend, right?” 

“Ah.” If Yixing’s dimple gets any deeper, he’ll have a permanent hole in his cheek. “Okay,” he agrees, brushing strands of hair out of Baekhyun’s face. “My baobei.” He looks up to see Kibum scolding an unrepentant Taemin for his Lutz-Loop combination, then leans down to quickly graze Baekhyun’s lips again. 

“ZHANG, I KNOW I DIDN’T JUST SEE THAT.” 

“Fuck, he saw.” Baekhyun giggles happily. “You know you’re really, really cute when you get embarrassed? GAH!” Baekhyun’s limbs go flailing when Yixing quickly maneuvers himself behind Baekhyun, grabs him under the armpits, and whirls him around.

“Say that again.” 

“Okay, OKAY, I’M SORRY--” Baekhyun’s still laughing breathlessly when Yixing sets him back down on his feet, tottering around on the slippery surface before clinging onto Yixing again. “Fuck, how do you spin that many times without getting dizz--”

“ZHANG, ARE YOU EVEN LISTENING?” But Yixing neither heard his coach nor regretted his decision to pull Baekhyun up to meet his lips, even when Kibum made him skate his entire 4-minute long program from last year as punishment afterwards. In the middle of off season. With all the jumps. AND the spins. He collapsed crying long before the last tune sounded.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi~  
> Ugh this update took SO long, but it was because I lost two days of writing because of personal schedule >< Speaking of which, my summer classes are starting up soon and I am also currently juggling two long chaptered fics, so I do anticipate that updates might take a little more time than they used to. Nonetheless, I love this fic with my entire heart, so I will do my best to keep regularly posting/updating as soon as I can! Thank you so much for all your nice comments each time and for reading, it means the world to me.


	13. Chapter 13

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> For your reading convenience, this is just a FYI that italic text is Mandarin~

[Taemin]

New skates arrived… ㅠㅠ

[Jongin]

oop you 2?

[Taemin]

ㅋㅋㅋ 

Tough practice tomorrow~

[Jongin]

Unfortunately ;-;

“Remind me again why exactly you need to wear those things around the house?” Jongdae asks, a little annoyed as Jongin traipses back and forth in front of the TV, bending deep in his knees with every step to soften the stiff leather skating boots. Jongdae watches him walk to and fro, furiously texting Taemin as he does so.

“‘Cause new skates are really, really stiff,” Jongin explains, coming to a stop and bouncing a little. “And the inside has layers of padding that aren’t molded yet. That only comes slowly by wearing them a ton.” 

“Does it hurt?” Jongdae inquires curiously. 

“Yuppp. It’s really uncomfortable and awkward, and the padding is also super rough at first. So it rubs in weird places and I get blisters,” Jongin explains.

“So like when you get new hiking boots?” 

“What would you know about hiking?” Jongin bursts into laughter at his roommate who only leaves the house if there’s a national emergency. “But yeah, like that.” 

“Or even just getting new shoes,” Jongdae shrugs, not too off-put by Jongin teasing him about his lack of physical activity. 

“Yeah, exactly. Edeas--these--are marketed as easier to break in since they use different material, but honestly, it’s just less of an adjustment period and doesn’t make the process hurt any less.” 

“Huh.” Jongdae crosses his arms and looks down at Jongin’s skate-clad feet. “Have you gotten blisters yet?” 

“Well, this is gonna be a problem spot tomorrow, I can already feel it.” Jongin bends over and rolls up part of his sweatpants, running a finger over the top edge of the skate. “It’s already rubbing my skin raw,” he murmurs, glancing at the patch of red, irritated skin. “I’ll probably duct tape that part of my ankle.” 

“DUCT TAPE?” 

“It works quite well,” Jongin shrugs. “Duct tape is a great solution for skates.” 

“Why don’t you use gel pads and bandages like dancers do?” Jongdae begins to ask, then shakes his head. “You know what, never mind. I don’t understand half the things you skaters do.”

“We do use them. But bandages are either too rough or the friction between them and the skate breaks them open. Gel pads tend to work, though.” 

“So use those instead of duct tape.” 

“Nah. I have a roll that has little bears on them, it’s super cute.” 

\--

“New skate gang.” Jongin flashes Taemin a peace sign and waits for him and Jonghyun to catch up at the front of the rink the next morning. “H’lo, Jjong-hyung.” 

“Hey.” 

“Did you wear them already?” Jongin asks Taemin. 

“Yup,” Taemin’s eyes begin to crinkle up at the memory, “I watched Naruto and ran around the apartment while Jjong made dinner.” Jongin laughs at the visual that pops into his head; Jonghyun groans at the memory. “He threw a spatula at me.” 

“Cause you were being a little shit!” Jonghyun screeches, baring his teeth at Taemin who only beams at his mother-hyung. 

“I suppose that’s one way to break them in,” Jongin muses when he catches his breath. Jonghyun holds the door open for both skaters as they walk into the locker room together. “Thanks.” 

“I’ll take what I can get. New skates are no fun.” Taemin pulls out said skates, kneading the top of the boot with both hands. 

“New skates?” Sehun walks in, and Jongin and Taemin both look up in assent. “Hah. Have fun.” 

“Thanks, I won’t.” 

“What’d ya get?” Jinki cranes his head to look at Jongin from where he’s laying across the narrow bench, head in Minho’s lap as he listens to new program music. Minho is dozing off while still sitting upright. Jongin can’t blame him; early morning practices really do suck. It can never be reiterated enough. 

“Edeas.” 

“Ah, of course.” Jinki drops his head back down and returns to thumbing through soundtracks. 

“Someone come running with me.” Jongin drops his skate on the ground with a clunk and complete disregard for preserving its shiny newness. 

“Me.” Taemin places his skate down far more carefully than Jongin and swings his arms in a wide circle as he follows Jongin out the door. “Sehun?” Taemin calls with one foot already out the door. 

“Nope.” Sehun plops himself in Jongin’s now-vacant spot and drops his head in Yixing’s lap. The elder promptly pats Sehun’s head a few times, completely unperturbed. “I’m gonna nap until Kibum yells at me.” 

“Not sure how long that’ll last, but good luck.” Taemin lets the locker room door swing shut and follows Jongin out into the cool gray morning. “Lezzgo!” he calls to Jongin, breaking into a Naruto run. A shout of laughter goes up as Jongin follows him around the rink. They manage to make an entire lap in the pose before both of them are too breathless from exertion and amusement to continue. 

“So whaddya think Kyungsoo would say if we skated around like that?” Jongin asks in between consistent exhales as they set a normal pace and form for their remaining two laps. 

“He’d tell you to switch to speed skating,” comes Taemin’s matter-of-fact answer. 

“Valid.” The remaining run is spent in comfortable silence as Jongin marvels in how easy it is to mess around with Taemin. Given Taemin’s quiet, intimidatingly confident aura and Jongin’s own hidden crush on the superstar skater, Jongin had assumed that becoming comfortable with Taemin would’ve been complicated, to say the least. But as they continue chattering mindlessly with each other while they lace up stiff skates extra tight, fill up water bottles at the fountain, and layer jackets to get ready to brace the cold, Jongin smiles easily, cracks jokes, and even playfully pushes Taemin from behind as they tentatively step onto the ice together. Aside from the occasional zing of electricity that runs through him when they lock eyes or nudge each other once in a while, being friends with Taemin is as easy as doing a Scratch Spin. 

“Nothing more advanced than Sit Spins and Double Axel today,” Kibum tells both of them sternly. 

“I don’t think I can handle anything more difficult than that,” Jongin shrugs nonchalantly, shuffling his feet. 

“Could we maybe do like, just a Triple Sal if--” 

“No.” Kibum glares at Taemin. 

“This is gonna be so boringgg,” Taemin whines, and Jongin finds himself getting flustered when he catches sight of Taemin’s petulant pout. Holy shit, how can one person be so cute? 

Kibum, apparently, is not as taken by Taemin’s charms as his teammate is. 

“If you’re bored, I can ask Minseok--” 

“I’m here,” a cheerful voice trills as Minseok comes to a graceful stop. Jongin shuffles out of the way so Minseok can put his bag down on the benches along the side of the rink, bowing a little and murmuring his greetings. “What do we need from me?” Minseok inquires, rummaging around for his little notebook that carries notes and reminders about each skaters’ style and preferred program content for the year. 

“Actually, I need you for multiple things,” Kibum pounces on Minseok, waving Taemin and Jongin away with a flick of his hand. “I’ll tell you the schedule later,” he tosses to his skaters. “Go warm up.” 

“I’m all ears.” Minseok finally finds his notebook and a pen. 

“Nah, I need the brat first.” Kibum glances around the rink, and upon realizing there’s only four out of six skaters circling the ice, he closes his eyes and heaves a long, tired sigh before yelling. “WHERE IS EVERYONE?” 

“They’re coming,” Jinki answers in passing. “Calm down,” he adds. “They’re only five minutes late.” Minseok sits down on the bench and crosses his legs, humming a tune to himself. 

“So we’re talking about Sehun?” He inquires, flipping to the youngest skaters’ page. 

“Yep, but I don’t want to explain myself twice. Sehun,” Kibum calls when the younger makes an appearance with untidy hair and puffy eyes. 

“Sup.” Kibum glares at the informalness, but Sehun proffers a bow, so Kibum just lets it slide. He’s still fond of the kid, aggravating as Sehun might be sometimes. After all, it’s not everyday that you find someone as dedicated and loyal as Sehun so as to just up and move his entire life in order to keep training with Kibum multiple times. 

“I’m moving you up to Junior this year,” Kibum answers without introduction. Minseok’s eyebrows shoot up in surprise. Sehun leans against the boards and yawns. 

“Do I have to?” 

“Yes.” Kibum holds up a hand and drops a finger with every point he makes. “You have a Quad Salchow and your Toe is coming along nicely. Stamina is definitely not an issue. We’re still in off-season and you don’t have any Novice-level international competitions, so it shouldn’t be a problem. And you’ll pass the test, no questions asked. If you want my opinion--and you do--just submit your protocol sheet from a local competition early in the year and pass Junior that way. That option is far better for you, in my opinion.” 

“How does that work again?” Sehun sighs. The standard way of moving up a figure skating level is usually to pass a test that has certain required elements, but the ISU had just established a new way to level up.

“You skate at the Junior level at a local competition early in the year,” Kibum explains to a sleepy Sehun. “Even though you’re still technically Novice now, you’re allowed to skate a level higher than your tested level. Then you will submit your protocol sheet to the Federation, fill out menial paperwork, and they’ll just update your records and move you up to Junior. All you need to do is rack up a certain amount of points in your technical score and program component score, and you can’t have any invalid elements--so you can’t leave anything out of your program.” 

“What’s the number of points I need to get?” Sehun asks. 

“You’ve already broken it with your worst skate in Novice,” Kibum waves a hand. “It’s a minor detail. I told you, you’ll pass. You just can’t pop any jumps or screw up a spin.” Kibum sighs as Sehun’s expression turns pouty. “I know you like being a baby, but it’ll be much better for you to start getting some recognition at the Junior level. You can skate Junior for two years, like Jongin is doing. Minseok, does that work?” Kibum glances at Minseok, who’s already scribbling and crossing things out. 

“Yep…” Minseok chews on the pen cap. “I’ll just extend your short program music that we chose by ten seconds, there’s barely a difference. And long programs for you are four minutes now--” 

“FOUR. MINUTES?” Sehun’s wide awake now. “I’m already passing out at the end of the 3:30 in Novice,” he states flatly. 

“You’re so dramatic,” Kibum snorts. “You’ll have to do 4:30 in Senior, better suck it up now.” 

“But I don’t wanna skate Junior--” 

“I don’t wanna deal with your whining, but look where we are,” Kibum casts an exasperated glance at Sehun. “So are we clear?” Sehun continues to look glum. “Kay, go skate now. You’ve stood here for long enough.” 

“Cause you were TALKING--” 

“JUST SKATE!!!” Kibum growls.

\--

“I’m so bored.” Taemin comes up behind Jongin at the boards and sprays a wave of snow onto the back of his pants. “Come do skating skills with me.” 

“Uhh,” Jongin shifts uncomfortably; Taemin’s skating skills are a LOT better than his. It’s something that Jongin has been struggling to relearn; when he first switched to Kibum, Jongin had realized that his fundamentals and basics were a lot weaker than those that Taemin, Jinki, Minho, and even Yixing wielded with seemingly effortless proficiency. “I don’t think I can do some of the exercises that you use,” Jongin mumbles. “My skating skills are really, really bad.” 

“They’re not bad. If they were bad, there’s no way you’d be doing Quads. Your previous coach just never taught you that upper body was just as important as knee bend. C’mon.” Taemin beckons to Jongin. “I’ll teach you some of the helpful ones that I use. Kibum won’t mind as long as we don’t stand around and talk.” At this, Jongin obediently follows Taemin to the top of the rink. 

“Let’s start with something super simple,” Taemin suggests. “And then work our way up in order to kill time.” 

“Works,” Jongin agrees. “How are your feet?” 

“Dying, but let’s not think about it.” Taemin starts by lifting his left foot and keeping it raised for the remainder of the exercise. Standing on the inside edge of his right skate, Taemin neatly changes the direction he is facing from forwards to backwards, switching the edge he is holding at the same time. He then turns forward again using the same bracket-turn. Just bending his knees and carving into the ice gives him speed as he repeats the pattern, even though he started out with no velocity. By the time Taemin is halfway down the ice, he’s picked up enough speed just from consecutive bracket-turns on one foot that he only needs to do one more long, graceful forward to backward bracket in order to glide the entire remaining half to the other side of the rink. He stops and waits for Jongin, who’s also gathered a ton of momentum in a very short period of time. They switch to left-foot brackets on the other side, then move onto another exercise. 

It’s the mind-numbing, quiet practice that quickly pulls Jongin’s thoughts away from his aching, cramping feet as he follows Taemin’s instruction when the exercises get more and more difficult. As it turns out, Taemin is a good teacher, patient and specific, never being too quick to assume proficiency or making fun of Jongin when he messes up. After all, skating in and of itself is highly specialized, and Taemin knows this as well as Jongin; expecting to master such advanced exercises in Jongin’s first few tries is, of course, ridiculous. Jongin quickly becomes comfortable enough under Taemin’s calm tutelage to stop being self-conscious and instead just focuses on performing each mini step-sequence to the best of his ability. Taemin calls out the names of turns as Jongin does them, sometimes gripping Jongin’s hand to maneuver his upper body into a better position that gives him more leverage to complete the turn easier. Unbeknownst to him, Jongin’s heart flutters a little every time Taemin adjusts his form. 

“Squeeze,” Taemin prompts, poking Jongin’s stomach a little to make sure he’s keeping his core engaged. The action makes Jongin startle and Taemin giggle. “Yeah, you have to keep your upper body still, but open your shoulders in order to let your body turn naturally. Right now you’re super stiff everywhere, so you’re essentially blocking yourself from turning.”

“But every time I open my shoulder to the turn, I stumble,” Jongin bites his lip in frustration. 

“Because your body is trying very hard to balance, so it stiffens. The position is foreign because you’re so used to just forcing your turns instead of using the connection between your blade and the ice. It’ll get easier and more natural with practice.” Taemin patiently demonstrates the exercise again, making sure to overemphasize the movement of his shoulders for Jongin. 

“Taem!” Minseok calls, putting an end to their impromptu lesson. Taemin glances over his shoulder. 

“Okay!” Taemin flashes a ‘one second’ sign. “I gotta go. Did I make any sense?” 

“Yeah! Yeah, you helped a lot. And this was fun, too.” Jongin unzips his jacket a little; he’s actually sweating from concentrating so hard. “Helped kill some time,” he adds, bending lower in his skates. 

“No problem. It was fun for me, too.” Taemin exchanges a quick high-five with Jongin, then tilts his head towards Minseok. “I’m gonna go improv now.” 

“Have fun.” Jongin goes back to his new exercises. 

\--

“I found music,” Jinki announces at large to the locker room after practice. Everyone looks up. 

“Sounds great,” Sehun says sarcastically after Jinki doesn’t elaborate. 

“I’m pulling it up right now.” Jinki presses play and Yixing immediately claps his hands together, recognizing the track. 

“Ahhh, what is called,” Yixing furrows his brows together.  _ “To Build A Home?”  _

“To Build A Home,” Jinki supplies the Korean title when everyone else remains confused. “I’m surprised you all haven’t heard it before.” 

“So this your last season?” Yixing asks as the melancholy piano melody and English lyrics float through the locker room. Jinki nods. 

“I wanted something sentimental and nostalgic. I feel like this song really encompasses everything that I--we’ve been through.” The wistful smile on his face says it all. “I’m 26, and I can feel myself slowly declining with every year. It’s time for me to go and let little superstars like you all take my place.” 

“No,” Jongin protests, feeling his throat close up. “Hyung…” Sehun, too, stares beseechingly at Jinki, letting the laces of his skates slip past his fingers. Taemin scoots closer to Jinki in a silent plea for comfort. The eldest skater drapes an arm around his shoulders, squeezing him comfortingly. 

“He’s not LEAVING leaving,” Minho is the first to crack the ice. “He’s joining Kibum after this year and becoming a coach.” 

“But it’s different,” Jongin mumbles. “We’ve always competed together and celebrated afterwards.” 

“We can still celebrate together and I’ll still be there to cheer you guys on,” Jinki reassures Jongin, beckoning him to get up and receive a tight hug. “I’ll stand at the boards for you and hold your stuff during competitions now. Imagine that, hmm? No more jittery Kibum at the boards. It’ll just be me.” 

“I REALLY like the sound of that.” Sehun is easily mollified. “Can you retire this year?” 

“SEHUN!” 

\--

When Jonghyun gets home, he immediately spots the skating suitcase tucked into its usual corner by the door, but upon a cursory glance around the living area, there’s no sign of the young skater anywhere. 

“Taem?” Jonghyun calls. 

“In here.” Jonghyun peeks his head into the bathroom to find Taemin sitting on the edge of the porcelain bathtub, soaking his feet in a small basin filled with lavender-scented epsom salt and hot water. A dramatic soundtrack is softly playing through his phone, and the skater himself leans against the tiled wall with half-closed eyes. 

“Hey. How was the second half of practice?” Jonghyun takes a seat on the lid of the toilet. 

“Okay,” Taemin replies softly, not opening his eyes. “Just improvised. Worked with Nini on skating skills.” 

“Still finding music?” Jonghyun prompts, pulling his knees up to his chest and wrapping his arms around them. 

“Actually, I’ve been listening to this one on repeat. Minseok found it; said it would be a great free skate.” Taemin drums his fingers on his thighs, tapping out the beat. “It’s from Final Fantasy VII.” 

“Turn it up a little,” Jonghyun prompts. “Oh, it’s very dramatic.” 

“Yeah, it is.” Taemin chews his lip. “We might use this track--’One Winged Angel’--in conjecture with something a little more subtle… maybe ‘Aerith’s Theme?’ I’ll play that one after this ends. What do you think?” 

“Play the other track now,” Jonghyun encourages, and Taemin does. The two of them sit in silence until the music finishes. When Taemin looks questioningly to the elder, Jonghyun nods in approval. 

“I think you’ll skate it really well, Taem. The first track is very dramatic and the nuances are extremely noticeable. I don’t think I’ve ever seen anyone skate to this before. It’ll make a much bigger impact, especially with this awesome percussional buildup.” 

“Yeah, I think so, too,” Taemin agrees. “‘The style is sort of similar to my ‘Romeo and Juliet’ free skate from last year, but at the same time, it’s extremely different. And as far as I know, I’ve never heard this style being skated to before, either.” 

“Exactly--but then ‘Aerith’s Theme’ introduces elements of softness and elegance to give you a breather in the middle, I presume?” When Taemin nods, Jonghyun continues his analysis. “It’ll definitely bring out a more mature side of you. A perfect stepping stone to your second season as a Senior man.” 

“There’s something so poignant about it,” Taemin murmurs. “I really love it.” The water sloshes in the tub a little as he wiggles his feet around. 

“How were your new skates?” 

“Okay.” Taemin tips his head back against the wall and heaves a quiet sigh, as if Jonghyun can’t read him like an open book. 

“Let me see your feet,” Jonghyun prompts, sliding off from the lid to roll up his sleeves and kneel in front of the plastic basin. 

“They’re fine.” But they’re not--Jonghyun’s brows furrow with worry when he gently touches the red, angry patches of irritated skin, the blisters on Taemin’s ankle bone and heel. Jonghyun runs his thumb firmly down the arch of Taemin’s left foot and Taemin tenses up, obviously in pain. 

“How long have you been sitting here?” 

“About 40 minutes or so.” 

“That’s long enough.” Jonghyun stands up and reaches for a fluffy towel to gently pat his feet dry. “Go sit on your bed.” 

“Hyung, I’m fine,” Taemin tries to protest, but Jonghyun fixes him with a stern gaze. 

“You need to be careful. Protect these, otherwise the rubbing will break skin when you skate tomorrow,” Jonghyun grazes the red patches with the tips of his fingers. “Why didn’t you stop and put some duct tape on the places that hurt the most?” 

“I didn’t think it was that bad. And when the burning started there was only an hour left and I was in a lesson, so I figured I could just deal with it…” Taemin shrugs as he shuffles over to his bed. 

“It’s not like Minseok wouldn’t have let you go to adjust,” Jonghyun grumbles. “I’m gonna have to disinfect these first. Stay put.” Jonghyun leaves in search of isopropyl alcohol and cotton swabs, returning to find Taemin putting on another soundtrack. Taemin winces and jerks when the alcohol touches raw skin, but Jonghyun holds him firmly in place with a tight hand around his ankle. “Just a quick swipe, Taemin-ah.” 

“It hurts!” 

“Then you should’ve gotten off before your skates literally broke skin,” Jonghyun scolds him as he works, but mostly because he’s just worried. “Look at this.” He draws an air-circle around the worst one on the front of Taemin’s shin, created by constantly pressing forward into the tongue of the boot when bending his knees and ankles. “Stop ignoring what your body is telling you. You always do that.” 

“Ow, ow, ow. Hyung, OW!” Taemin whines. 

“Stay still. I’m almost done, okay?” The stinging is replaced by Jonghyun’s gentle hands, which focus on the arch of Taemin’s foot. “You have a giant knot here, you know.” 

“Yeah, my feet cramped up. Especially my left one--I have a flat arch and Edea’s don’t offer any arch support at all.” 

“Get an insole for that skate, then.” Jonghyun presses firmly into the bottom of his foot. At first, Taemin clenches his teeth and goes rigid every time Jonghyun even grazes his foot with the barest pressure. Jonghyun glances up worriedly, wondering if he’s doing more harm than good. 

“Keep going,” Taemin mutters. “It’s like a gym sore.” So Jonghyun eases up on the intensity a little bit, kneading instead of pressing, making sure to avoid the tender, broken blisters. 

“Tomorrow, before you skate, make sure you put a Band-Aid over those blisters before you tape,” Jonghyun reminds him, letting go of his left foot and taking up the right one. 

“I know.” Taemin winces as Jonghyun begins to press harder. Taemin sighs in relief now as his muscles loosen up a little thanks to Jonghyun’s massage and the epsom salt soak. “Thank you, hyung.” 

“Anytime,” Jonghyun answers quietly, concentrating on Taemin’s toes now, pinching each of them and trying to soften up the hard skin on the outside of his big toe. “So what’s on your mind?” Taemin startles, caught off-guard. Jonghyun looks up at him, raising one eyebrow. “You thought you could hide it?” 

“N-no--” 

“Tch.” There’s a small, affectionate smile playing on the corner of the elder’s mouth. “You crawl into my bed, steal my clothes, eat my rice, and you think you can hide anything? Taeminnie.” Jonghyun stands up and affectionately ruffles Taemin’s hair. “C’mon.” Taemin’s face brightens a little bit as Jonghyun babies him, but only a bit before his thoughts consume him again. 

“Jinki-hyung is retiring after this season,” Taemin folds his hands in his lap as Jonghyun takes a seat next to him on the bed. “He’s gonna join Kibum’s coaching team.” 

“That’s a good option for him.” 

“But Nini’s right. It’s different,” Taemin whines, leaning against Jonghyun’s shoulder. All of a sudden, the charismatic, omniconfident, and ambitious presence that surrounds Taemin out on the ice is stripped away, leaving an extraordinary 18-year old with ordinary worries. Now, he spills all of his anxiety to Jonghyun, feeling a little lost and perhaps left behind. “Jinki-hyung is the one who’s been there from day one. He practically raised all of us, him and Minho-hyung. And it just feels like… like he was a constant. That no matter if any of us ended up quitting or giving up, Jinki-hyung would always be there, competing and training and skating.” Taemin’s rambling now, but Jonghyun listens patiently to the young skater’s worries, even though he hasn’t started making dinner yet and he’s exhausted from a long day at work. “He’s ALWAYS there. Out of all of us, it can’t be Jinki-hyung that leaves. He’s part of the rink. We--we need him. He keeps us together.” Taemin’s voice turns pleading now. “If he retires, what are we gonna do?” 

“Jinki isn’t leaving,” Jonghyun begins to console the distraught little skater curled up against his side. “You’ll still see him everyday at the rink. And I know that it’s different,” Jonghyun presses a finger to Taemin’s lips as he makes to speak, “and of course it hurts more because it’s Jinki. He’s the first one of your generation of skaters to retire, and he’s your foundation, like you said. But eventually, all of you will retire or stop competing. Nothing lasts forever, Taeminnie. Jinki had an amazing career, and he knows this. It’s very important that a skater knows when it is time for him to leave, instead of holding on for as long as he can.” 

“But I don’t want him to stop competing.” 

“But what if he does?” Jonghyun offers him this reality gently. Taemin’s eyes are dim and worried. “He still wants to be as close to you all as possible--at least, I assume that’s why he’ll join the coaching team. He has no plans to let any of you go without him. But you should respect and trust his decisions, Taeminnie.” Taemin is silent for a moment as Jonghyun’s wisdom sinks in. Then he slowly turns his head to bury it in Jonghyun’s shoulder. Jonghyun pulls him closer and wraps comforting arms around him, patting his back gently. 

“It’ll be okay,” he soothes. “You’ll hardly notice a difference, I presume. Jinki’s still young--it’ll be good for Kibum to have a coach who can actually demonstrate elements and interact with you all. If anything, I daresay Jinki will be more supportive than ever.” 

“It’s just difficult to let him go,” Taemin’s voice is muffled into Jonghyun’s shirt. 

“You’re only letting go of Team SK Jinki. You don’t have to let go of Jinki-hyung at all. He’ll always be there for you, just like I’ll always be here as well.” Jonghyun pats Taemin’s back. “He’s sticking around for the long run because he wants to, Taem. All the signs point to it. Nobody’s leaving you. Okay?” 

“Okay.” 

  
  
  
  
  
  
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hello! i'm back :D thank you for waiting so patiently! i'm SOSOFT from writing this chapter omg ;-; hope you guys liked it too, domestic!jongtae is literally the cutest thing EVER.  
> I come bearing presents!  
> [Jinki's FS music: 'To Build A Home'](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z_ICgbOVD10)  
> [Taemin's FS music: 'One Winged Angel'](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zkZGFNCS6iQ) (y'all Aranee found this and I'm IN LOVE with it; I swear I'm gonna show this to my choreographer ;-; Taemin's about to skate the SHIT out of this track :D)  
> [Taemin's FS music pt. 2: 'Aerith's Theme'](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_w2jrGbZ27o)  
> Minseok also mentioned extending Sehun's short program :3 here it is below:  
> [Sehun's SP music: 'Back to Black'](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TQXI0PWQDpg)  
> Also Aranee's right below me now :D K love you guys a lot ♡♡♡♡♡ see you soon~
> 
> \--
> 
> Hello everyone, Aranee here o/.
> 
> We decided that I would move to the author's note. That seems somehow more appropriate than the comment section ~~and who knows if anyone actually every read the comment section at all XD~~. You'll see me here from now on~
> 
> I have to say, Jjong's and Taemin's interaction in this chapter makes me feel feelings... I hope you enjoy it and can bath in the sweetness.
> 
> Thank you for reading and we are looking forward to your comments <3!


	14. Chapter 14

**Notes for the Chapter:**

>  _Italic text_ is in Mandarin (Chinese). Translations for the characters follow immediately afterwards, so no need to Google Translate ;)  
> We decided to up the rating of this fanfiction from Mature to Explicit with this chapter. As we started out with Mature, we will put a warning in red before the explicit parts start and another spacer when they end with a short summary of what happened in between for readers who prefer not to read explicit content.

“Damn.” Taemin suddenly stops right in front of the rink entrance, causing Jongin to walk straight into him. 

“Huh?” Jongin asks once he’s resisted the urge to just wrap his arms around Taemin in an impromptu back-hug. “What?” 

“I forgot to get an insole for my skate.” Taemin claps himself on the forehead in retribution before swinging the door open a little harder than usual in frustration. “Damn,” he murmurs again. Jongin checks his watch. 

“If we hurry, we could get one right now before practice at the pharmacy,” Jongin suggests. “We just won’t have time for warm-up.” 

“Nah.” Taemin sighs. “I’ll just suck it up for one more practice.” 

“Why do you need one insole?” 

“My feet are weird; the left one’s flat but the right one is fine.” 

“Huh,” Jongin considers this for a moment. “I mean, my first instinct would be to say that it must be weird skating with an insole in one skate and none in the other, but I guess it doesn’t feel strange to you if you have that problem.” 

“Yeah, I’ve almost always skated with an insole in one and without in the other. You’d think I’d remember by now,” Taemin sighs, setting his skates down in his usual corner and rolling his head a few times to warm up before running. 

“Taemin-ah?” Jongin asks somewhat timidly after they return from their warm-up laps while the elder walks through his choreography off the ice in the small warm-up area near the front of the rink lobby. 

“Sup?” Taemin doesn’t stop moving, only tilts his head back to indicate that he’s listening. 

“Could you--like, when you’re done, of course--look at my Quad Flip rotation?” 

“Sure.” Taemin hops on one foot backwards, imitating a landing position off the ice, then turns toward Jongin. “Go for it.” Carefully, Jongin mimics the movements into a Quad Flip--it looks gangly and slightly awkward off the ice, with no momentum and lots of friction, but that can’t be helped--and snaps up into his air position, rotating a neat four rotations, before landing on his right leg nicely, hopping out in a small circle with his left leg extended out forty-five degrees behind him and arms stretched out to either side. 

“I mean, you’ve got it clean off the ice,” Taemin scrutinizes his technique with furrowed eyebrows. “And if you can do it with friction and a stand-still takeoff, then there shouldn’t be any problems when you do it with all the momentum that being on the ice gives you.” 

“But I don’t know why I’m still falling on it,” Jongin scoops up his jump rope from the wall and heads back to the locker room with Taemin to get their skates on. 

“Check your timing and your technique--it might shift a little bit on the ice just out of nervous habit. But it looks good, Nini.” Taemin’s voice is warm with praise, and Jongin’s cheeks redden just a little. “You’ve made a ton of improvement on it alrea--” Taemin’s words cut out as he sits down on the bench and pulls on the front tongue of the boot to get his skates on. Jongin glances up at him, confused, as Taemin looks inside of his left skate. 

“You good?” 

“Yeah,” Taemin says slowly, fumbling with something inside of his skate. Jongin’s eyebrows raise up in appraisal as Taemin pulls out an arch support insole and holds it up to show it to Jongin. 

“I thought you said you forgot to get one?” Jongin inquires. 

“I did,” Taemin murmurs. A slow, grateful smile blossoms across his face when he places it gently back into his skate. “I guess Jjong-hyung didn’t.” 

\--

Spring is in full swing now, and with the delicate white-pink sprays of plum blossoms that bloom in the front of the ice rink comes the frantic realization from coaches and skaters alike that competition season is right around the corner. Minseok stops lingering over his music choices and delivers the final verdict for his last few skaters. Minho will get to skate to that tango that suits his fiery on-ice charisma perfectly, Yixing decides to go artistic this season for his free skate and settles on ‘La Terre Vue du Ciel’, and Jinki gets poignant ‘Nessun Dorma’ for his short program. Sehun starts to complain less about his 4-minute free-skate for this year and starts running more laps during warm-up to build stamina. Taemin can be found in the empty back space of the rink for hours after practice with earbuds stuffed in both ears, hyper-focused on choreography for his new free skate while Jonghyun leans against the wall and watches him appraisingly. Kibum eventually relents and lets Taemin choreograph his novel Quad Lutz-Triple Loop combination into his program--partially out of sheer exasperation, and partially because Taemin’s perfected it to such a point where it’d be a shame if he didn’t do it. And as for Jongin, he’s getting increasingly frustrated with his Quad Flip, because it’s been four months since he started working on it; while he is now fully rotating the jump, he’s still sitting down during the landing. 

“You got so used to falling that it’s the only thing you do,” Kyungsoo snaps a few days later as they watch a slow-motion replay of Jongin’s last attempt at his Quad Flip. Jongin flicks snow off of his pants and gloves, leaning in to watch a particular frame. “Your weight is on your heel during the landing, which signifies that during the takeoff, you rushed the jump. Walk through the jump right here and count the timing for me.” Jongin obeys, imitating the moves of going into a Quad Flip for Kyungsoo while he claps out the beat. “Can you count?” Kyungsoo raises his voice. “One, two, three, FOUR. Jump on four, not three and a half, not three and a quarter, and definitely not fucking TWO.” 

“It’s getting closer,” Minho pats a dejected Jongin on his back when they get off the ice after another busy practice in which Kyungsoo had gotten so frustrated with Jongin that he’d ended their lesson early. “And you know Kyungsoo, don’t take it too personally. He just wants a great season for you.”

“It’s not just that,” Jongin mutters, even though he’s also miffed at Kyungsoo for yelling at him in front of the entire rink, because now everybody knows just how horrible Jongin is at Quad Flip. “I just wanna land it, too. It’s so annoying.” 

“What’s up?” A pair of strong arms wraps around Jongin’s waist and a chin rests on his shoulder. “It’s okay, Nini.” Jinki’s voice comes in, calm and soothing, while Minho nods in agreement. “Don’t be embarrassed, we all know Kyungsoo is an asshole at times.” Yixing wanders into the locker room, sweaty and red-faced, takes one look at Jongin’s melancholic expression, and promptly produces two pieces of Jongin’s favorite melon-flavored hard candies from out of nowhere. Surrounded by his hyungs, Jongin lets himself be coddled and comforted, even though he draws the line at Jinki teasingly offering to take his skates off for him. 

“Hyung, take my skates off,” Sehun whines from across the locker room, laughing when Jinki makes a flicking gesture towards him. 

“Where’s Taemin?” Jongin murmurs after a minute. Jinki lets go of him so he can sit down and untie his skates. 

“Still on the ice choreographing with Minseok. Don’t worry,” Minho adds, “they’ll get kicked off soon by the Zamboni driver.” 

“Has he made any substantial progress?” Sehun inquires, lying prone on the skinny wooden bench and squinting straight into the bright lights, contemplating his life decisions after a killer endurance-based practice. 

“Yes,” Jongin supplies the answer to this question. “He’s got about half of it done in two days. Well, not including the time it took to think about it off the ice.” As if right on cue, the door slams open and in walks Taemin with Kibum trailing behind him. At the appearance of their coach, all the skaters except Taemin, who already seems to know what Kibum is going to say, look up. 

“We’re starting morning _and_ afternoon practices from next week,” Kibum announces. “And I’m not going to hound you all just yet, but it’s time to start losing weight. Come mid-May, I’m going to start hosting group workouts at the gym again. As always, participation is optional, but I highly suggest that you all attend.” And with that, he leaves as quickly as he came, no doubt to escape before the onslaught of complaints bursts out from Sehun. 

“Well, I expect that,” Yixing murmurs, scrolling through his Weibo feed absentmindedly. 

“Yeah,” Jongin sighs, pulling at the neckline of his shirt and glancing down into it at his upper body. He’s not in _terrible_ shape, he supposes. At least he still kinda has an outline of abs. “Rip, guess no more pizza nights for a while.” 

“Shame.” 

“Indeed.” Jongin glances over to Taemin, who’s going cross-eyed with concentration as he stares at a video. “Taemin-ah, you know if you cross your eyes for too long, they won’t uncross?” 

“What?” Taemin glances up with (thankfully) uncrossed eyes that crinkle up in amusement. “Where’d you get that from?” 

“I was teasing. Whatcha lookin’ at?” Jongin leans over and Taemin holds his phone closer so that Jongin can see the video that’s playing. Minseok recorded it, Jongin surmises, and it’s Taemin’s free skate taken from the angle that the judges would see it from. 

“Did Minseok stand on the penalty box benches for this angle?” Jongin chuckles. 

“Yeah. I’m just trying to see if the movements translate nicely from a higher up viewpoint. Minseok said it looked good, but everything looks better from eye level. I think I might need to change this part up,” Taemin murmurs, more to himself than anything, reaching out to replay a certain section in the video. As hard as Jongin tries, he can’t see what’s wrong with it. 

“Why?” Jongin asks, hoping that he doesn’t sound too incredibly naive or dumb. 

“Well, there’s nothing really wrong with it. But I just have an idea that might make it look even better. Sometimes it’s nice to go back and watch all the choreo in action,” Taemin explains, pulling his bottom lip in between his teeth as they watch the two minutes out of four that Taemin’s already choreographed. “You get inspiration from watching what you’ve already created. Or worst case scenario, you realize that the choreo isn’t what you envisioned at all.” 

“I see.” Jongin focuses on the video as well, mesmerized by the effortless carriage across the ice. Taemin only marks his jumps by skidding to a stop where they should be, and he simply mimics the vague position of his spins, but the transitions from element to element as well as the overall concept already look so natural on him that it’s hard to tell that the choreography is, in fact, only days old. “You make it look so… easy already.” Jongin thinks back to how difficult it was for him to grasp Minseok’s choreography at the beginning of last season when he’d first made the coaching change. The vivid young choreographer had been extremely patient and thorough with him, but he’d still been apologetic about all the difficulties that he had given Minseok. 

“Oh, no. It’s very rough,” Taemin laughs at Jongin’s high regard. “There’s still a lot of construction that needs to be done with the program before it’s anywhere near ready to compete.” 

“You should see my programs at the beginning of each season then,” Jongin grumbles. 

“Everyone has a different learning curve,” Taemin shrugs. “But it doesn’t even matter, really--as long as you can deliver a clean or almost-clean program by the time the Grand Prix series starts each year. Or in your case, JGP.” 

“That’s true,” Jongin agrees, feeling his spirits lift a little. When he tries to pull his gloves off, Jongin realizes he’s still holding the candy that Yixing gave him to cheer him up. “Want one?” Jongin asks, holding a piece out to Taemin. The elder accepts it wordlessly with a nod of thanks. 

“Don’t worry about your Quad Flip,” Taemin says all of a sudden, unwrapping the little green sphere and popping it into his mouth. “And definitely don’t pay Kyungsoo any mind. We’ve all been in that situation. Trust me, it’s fine.” 

“I just want to land it,” Jongin complains. 

“You will. It’s very nearly there,” Taemin encourages him. “Any day now. We can all see the progress you’ve made on it in these past few months. And Kyungsoo’s just frustrated because he wants you to land it, too.” 

“I know.” Jongin pulls at his laces fretfully. As if the fact that he was back to doing Quads wasn’t indication enough that his skates are now fully broken in, Jongin traces the light pink spot of skin where his blisters have healed on his shin. “But it’s humiliating to get yelled at,” Jongin mumbles, wincing at the fresh memory. 

“Hey.” There’s a thin hand on his shoulder. That, coupled with the kindness in Taemin’s low voice, makes Jongin’s heart flutter with nervous happiness. “You’re not the first, and definitely not the last, to get screamed at by Do Kyungsoo. Just know that there’s a good reason Kibum keeps him on the coaching team. He’s amazing at what he does.” 

“Being constantly angry?”

”Well, yes,” Taemin’s smile is equal parts comforting and bemused; “but also jump technique. His is world-renowned. Learn all you can from him. Do you know why he sticks with our team rather than working with Coach Rafael Arutyunyan in California with Nathan Chen? Or hanging out with Coach Brian Orser over in Canada with Yuzuru Hanyu and Javier Fernandez and all those legends?” 

“No,” Jongin answers honestly. The hand on his shoulder squeezes a little, as if Jongin could ever forget its presence. 

“Because he truly believes that one day, one of us is going to surpass them. He has faith in all of us, even though he never explicitly says it,” Taemin tells Jongin. “Well, actually, he does. He shows it in the MOST explicit of ways.” When Jongin shares a laugh with Taemin, he suddenly feels lighter than he has for the whole day. 

\--

Come next week, the first day of double practices has all the skaters dog-tired. They had gotten used to expending all of their energy during the first practice and then having the rest of the day to work out, run, or vegetate at their own leisure. But now, Jongin has never dragged his feet more as he makes his way into the locker room, still half-asleep and very annoyed at his alarm for having woken him up from a mid-afternoon power nap. Not to mention he’s constantly hungry these days, too. The shift from low to high intensity training is always jarring at the beginning of each competition season. 

“I am. So Fucking Hungry,” Jongin announces, dropping his stuff off at his usual spot and diving straight into Minho’s lap to resume his nap. He’s already closed his eyes when the locker door opens again, and Jongin doesn’t bother peeking to see who it is, prepared for Jinki’s murmured ‘good afternoon’ or Sehun’s loud complaints. What he’s not prepared for, though, is the clatter of a phone hitting the locker room floor and _Baekhyun’s_ gleeful laugh as Yixing embraces him. 

“你怎么来了？ _Why are you here?”_ Yixing asks in bewildered happiness, immediately pulling Baekhyun into his chest. 

“Hey babe,” Baekhyun murmurs, wrapping his own arms around Yixing’s waist and squeezing tightly. “I missed you.” 

“You see me two days ago.” But Yixing’s elation at the surprise visit is also painted across his entire face. 

“Okay, and? I still missed you.” 

“Shut it,” Jongin snarls, resolutely keeping his eyes closed. “Let me sleep in peace.” Minho’s hand strokes his shoulder softly, calming him down. 

“Goddamn, aren’t you the nicest lil thing today,” Baekhyun coos. “Just a perfect ray of sunshine.” 

“We go outside,” Yixing says, much more apologetically, gently nudging Baekhyun towards the door. “Sorry.” 

“Was there some other motive for going outside as well?” Baekhyun asks, practically skipping next to Yixing. 

“Maybe.” 

“Oh? Am I getting more kisses? I wanna watch your practice today, babe,” Baekhyun purrs while Yixing clasps his hand and pulls him towards the back of the rink. Thankfully, there isn’t a choreographing Taemin there this afternoon, so Yixing promptly leads Baekhyun towards a wall that both of them are becoming very familiar with and presses him up against it. Baekhyun’s incessant teasing falters, then stops as he’s caged in by Yixing’s arms. “Uh… oh.” 

_“Guess this is as good of a warm-up as any,”_ Yixing breathes before leaning in. Baekhyun’s breath hitches as Yixing’s lips touch his, then he takes it in stride, gently moving against Yixing. He’s been getting a lot more practice these days, and Yixing’s so patient with him that Baekhyun’s starting to get more and more confident, even gathering up the courage to make the first move and peck Yixing on the lips in the middle of the movie that they watched last Saturday. Yixing had said nothing, but Baekhyun felt the smile on his lips when the elder had leaned over for another. 

“Mmm’re gonnmmf make me forget what I—mmf—“ Baekhyun’s attempts to talk are muffled by Yixing’s kisses, which are affectionate yet hungry. They’ve been official for a few weeks now—the happiest of Baekhyun’s life—but this is as far as they have gone so far; sneaking kisses behind ice rinks, in darkened movie theaters and in front of Baekhyun’s apartment. Yixing is taking things slow, mostly because he’s afraid that Baekhyun might short-circuit if things went too fast. But lately, Baekhyun’s been getting more and more flamboyant with his flirting, especially since Yixing’s hands have started to wander just a little. For one, Baekhyun’s ass feels just as nice as it looks. 

“Babe,” Baekhyun whimpers after being kissed senseless, and Yixing finally breaks apart from him with the lingering taste of strawberry lip balm. “Uhmagod,” Baekhyun’s eyes are unfocused and he clings to Yixing tightly. “I forgot what I was gonna ask,” Baekhyun breathes, keeping his head tightly buried in Yixing’s shoulder. “W-when does your practice end?” he manages after a few minutes. 

“5:15. It is two hours.” Yixing checks his phone. He should probably get in a quick warm-up right about now, but curse the throes of honeymoon-stage eloping, because it’s gonna take way more than the threat of pulled muscles and a potentially angry Kibum to get Yixing to leave his drop-dead adorable boyfriend to go do off-ice Triple Axels right now. “Why? Dinner together?” Yixing muses. He can’t stop himself from ruffling Baekhyun’s hair; the younger is just too cute staring at him with those hopeful puppy eyes. 

“Can’t,” Baekhyun sighs regretfully. “My schedule is super tight--but I was gonna ask if you wanted to come back to my place after your practice and watch me stream. If you don’t have anything else going on.” Baekhyun smirks at the mildly surprised look on Yixing’s face. “I wanna show off to you,” Baekhyun purrs. “Whaddya say?” 

“Okay,” Yixing agrees quietly, but his mind is going a mile a minute. An invitation into his apartment? Are they on the same page? Is he expected to stay the night? Is it just a stream and nothing more? Baekhyun takes his quick affirmation at the surface level while Yixing’s still struggling with organizing syntax in his mind to ask one out of a million questions. 

“Consider yourself lucky,” Baekhyun winks at him, beaming from ear to ear. “Not everyone gets to watch Kyoong stream live. Actually, nobody’s ever watched me stream live except for my teammates,” Baekhyun amends. “You’re the first, babe.” 

“I’m honored,” Yixing murmurs, pressing a soft kiss into Baekhyun’s hair. 

\--

“Here,” Baekhyun stops Yixing in front of his apartment door. “Trust me, the ahjussi next door isn’t nearly as hot as me. No need to investigate.” Yixing blushes while Baekhyun opens the door and welcomes him in. Yixing glances around at the clutter; there are dirty dishes in the sink, a pile of blankets thrown carelessly over a gray suede couch, and a haphazard stack of books that’s topped with quite an impressive collection of League of Legends figurines as Yixing cautiously makes his way into Baekhyun’s bedroom. Yixing finds it hilarious that half of Baekhyun’s bedroom is a mess, but the other half--the part captured by the camera while Baekhyun hosts his live streams--is neat and orderly. 

“I’m a messy person,” Baekhyun supplies, as if Yixing can’t see that for himself. “Sorry not sorry.” 

“Me, too.” It’s not even Yixing’s fault, he’s just too exhausted after practice and workout each day to bother hanging up clothes or organizing his bathroom countertop. Baekhyun’s apartment exudes the same energy of a man too busy and hardly home enough to care too much about cleanliness. Yixing decides it’s exactly what he expected from Baekhyun. 

“Ah, I gotta do makeup first,” Baekhyun pats his bare face. 

“Pretty,” Yixing tells him, enveloping him in a back hug. “Don’t need.” 

“I appreciate that, but it’s for the cameras,” Baekhyun waddles his way into the equally cluttered bathroom with Yixing still clinging onto him. “Gotta catfish all the boys and girls into thinking that I’m cuter than I actually am. Not just a socially awkward gamer dude sitting in sweatpants all day and eating cereal at 3am.” 

“但是我觉得你是最可爱的.”

“Huh?” 

“But I think you are cutest.” 

“Me? No, you.” Baekhyun leans forward to pat a thin layer of BB cream over his already clear complexion. 

“I can do for you?” Yixing asks, watching Baekhyun in the mirror. 

“Huh?” 

“化妆. Makeup.” 

“Oh!” Baekhyun’s eyes light up. “I--yeah, sure. I don’t need much.” 

“I know,” Yixing says softly, rummaging through the small bag for a natural-colored eyeshadow. “Close your eyes.” Baekhyun obeys, turning to Yixing so he can carefully brush beige over his eyelids and add some darker brown in the corners for definition. He works with feather-light touches and precision, pulling his lips in between his teeth as he concentrates. Yixing turns away for a split second to grab lip tint, and when he looks back at Baekhyun, the younger is standing there, trying to hide a ridiculously large grin behind his hand. 

“Sorry,” Baekhyun’s eyes are crinkled up into little half-moon crescents, “Nobody’s ever offered to do my makeup for me before. You know all these tiny little things that you do are so freaking cute, and I just--” The tip of Yixing’s lip-tint-smeared finger lands on Baekhyun’s lip, effectively quieting his rambling. 

“Makeup is fun,” Yixing murmurs quietly, even though his cheeks are pink from Baekhyun’s compliments. “I do a lot for competition. Help Sehun, because he do not know how. Want to do for you, too.” 

“Oh, right,” Baekhyun mumbles, trying and failing to talk without moving his lips. “I forget you guys have to do makeup.” 

“Yes, for competition and show. 好了. Done. Put together,” Yixing instructs, pressing his lips against each other to show what he means. Instead, Baekhyun shyly tilts upwards and kisses him full on the mouth. “Oh!” 

“This works too, right?” Baekhyun steps back to admire his handiwork; Yixing’s lips are now a little more cherry red than before. 

“Works,” Yixing agrees, suppressing the urge to lean back in. Instead, he swipes his thumb along the outer edge of Baekhyun’s lip, cleaning up a little smeared lipstick. “There.” 

“Thank you, babe,” Baekhyun coos, leading the way back into his bedroom and motioning to a chair next to his gaming setup. “You can sit there, you’ll be out of frame. One of these days, you’re gonna sit on my lap though,” Baekhyun winks. “And kiss me while I take Baron.” Yixing likes the sound of that perhaps a little too much. “Anyways, I’ll get started.” 

“How long?” Yixing asks. 

“Three hours, give or take. I know it’s not really fun to just watch, so feel free to grab a snack or wander around when you get bored.” Baekhyun quickly sets up as he talks. “Oh, but don’t go into the bathtub, there’s a dead body in there.” 

“What?” 

“Kidding.” Baekhyun’s mouth quirks upwards. “You’re so goddamn cute.” 

\--

About two hours in, Yixing’s still as transfixed as he was at the beginning. Not so much on the game, even though Baekhyun’s absolutely killing it with every one that he wins. Rather, Yixing leans his cheek on his hand, engrossed in fondly admiring Kyoong’s vivacious on-screen presence in real-time; the way his nose scrunches up when he laughs loud and clear; the way he chatters away about music, the game, how his day has been, the succulents on his windowsill, and everything else over the moon; the way he flirts easily with his fans. The third one makes Yixing just the tiniest bit jealous. It’s so easy to fall for Kyoong, Yixing thinks as Baekhyun blows an air kiss to a new subscriber and the midlane Yasuo that he just two-shotted in late game. But he knows this by experience as well; even before his chance encounter with Baekhyun, hadn’t he also been enamored with the gamer’s on-screen presence and persona?

“‘What Kyoong wants, he gets,’” Baekhyun reads a comment, then smirks. “And what if I want you in bot lane with me next time? Whaddya say, hmm? Should I do a stream where I play with all of you?” Yixing glances at the cheerful expression on his face, flawlessly clear because of his makeup and happiness. 

“‘Is it possible to fall in love with someone over the way they play LeBlanc?’ I don’t know,” Baekhyun muses, “Why don’t you tell me?” 

“‘The best mid laner in the world is also the cutest boy in the world.’” Baekhyun chuckles at this one and cups his face in his hands, deliberately pouting just a little to show off his charms before returning his hands to the keyboard and mouse. 

“‘Would you ever go out with a fan?’ Baby, we just went out yesterday!” Baekhyun pouts, and Yixing briefly puzzles over this for a second before realizing that Baekhyun is referring to yesterday’s stream.

“Oh,” Baekhyun exclaims when he catches sight of a particular username on his screen. “Kimjongdaewife, you’re back! I missed you. ‘You remembered me’--of course I did!” Baekhyun’s lively energy and charisma radiates off of him in waves. He’s naturally unnatural in front of the camera, perfectly imperfect. Every bit of his personality screams cute, nerdy, dorky boyfriend material, and Yixing hates but loves it at the same time. Because Baekhyun is his cute, nerdy, dorky boyfriend material, and not anyone else’s. But now, as Baekhyun takes out the enemy team with an easy triple kill for his hundreds of thousands of viewers to watch without even a side glance at the small pout forming on Yixing’s face, the skater can’t help but feel a little forgotten. And while the rational part of Yixing’s brain knows it's because Baekhyun needs to stay focused on his game, he’s still a tad envious of all these fans who Baekhyun seems to love and flirt with so easily. 

As for the gamer himself, he’s in his element. The stream is going well, Baekhyun’s playing in his top condition tonight, and most importantly, he knows he has Yixing’s full attention. Out of the corner of his eye, he’s been constantly watching the one person that he wants to impress the most, and he delights in the fact that Yixing’s eyes have never really left him throughout the past couple hours. 

“Honestly, you know what’s really fun?” Baekhyun chirps. In his peripheral, Yixing shifts a little. “Playing like a tease.” The gamer’s lips curl up into a coy smile. “Tower diving for the kill in early game just because I can.” He knows Yixing loves it when he gets a little cheeky, but what he doesn’t expect is the warm hand suddenly laid over the middle of his leg, curling over the inside of his thigh to squeeze suggestively. Baekhyun’s breath hitches. “U-um--.” He feels himself twitch while Yixing plays dumb, letting his fingers trace the inseam of his sweatpants absentmindedly. All of a sudden, Baekhyun’s attention is compromised as he goes in for the tower dive; he already knows the outcome before it happens and his screen turns black and white. “Oops,” Baekhyun forces a sheepish smile on his face even though all of his focus is on the way Yixing squeezes and kneads the soft flesh on the inside of his thigh as he moves upwards. 

The skater doesn’t even bother hiding his self-satisfied smirk when Kyoong dies in-game. Baekhyun’s face is screwed up in adorable shame, and underneath his roaming hands, the feeling of Baekhyun’s tensing muscles eggs Yixing on. Originally, he’d just wanted to remind Baekhyun of his presence, but seeing Baekhyun’s reactions--the way his eyelids flutter shut and he inhales through his nose when he tamps down on his self-control--just makes Yixing want to rile his boyfriend up even further. 

Nobody’s ever touched him with such carnal implications before, and Baekhyun can barely breathe as Yixing’s fingertips tease up and down along Baekhyun’s inner thigh. Oh my god, Baekhyun thinks, feeling light-headed as his screen brightens again. He has no idea how he’s going to play for the next hour. He glances at the comments on the left side of his screen; it’s filled with ‘LOL’ and ‘f’, but they’re more so affectionately teasing Kyoong rather than mean-spirited. 

“You know what?” Baekhyun heaves a theatrical sigh for the camera and forces himself to stay as relaxed as possible as Yixing digs his fingernails into his thigh almost posessively. “L-learning opportunity here. Make sure you can keep your shit together.” Baekhyun is a hypocrite, self-proclaimed and in practice.

Meanwhile, Yixing doesn’t even bother hiding his smile anymore as he watches Baekhyun scramble for words from even the lightest and most innocent of touches. The skater’s dimple deepens even more while he searches Baekhyun’s face for his all-too-cute and hypersensitive reactions to his every movement. Yixing caresses the warmth of his thigh, rubbing the soft cotton of Baekhyun’s sweatpants in circles with just enough pressure so that Baekhyun can feel the outline of Yixing’s fingers as well. It’s enough to make Baekhyun furrow his eyebrows and press his soft, pink lips together in an effort to conceal his growing arousal to the viewers who watch his every move. Yixing’s fingers inch upwards, wrapping around Baekhyun’s hip for a fraction of a second before sneaking under his shirt to run a warm thumb along the elastic waistband. Baekhyun stutters through a sentence; Yixing preens. _我的行动,_ Yixing thinks, eyes never leaving Baekhyun’s face. _I did this._ Baekhyun’s reactions are downright intoxicating and the elder thrills in drawing them out of him; the younger is pliant and sensitive to his every caress. Baek’s lips part slightly, he masks his hitch of breath with a cough, and his entire body stiffens as he refocuses on the game. It’s the best kind of feedback loop; the more Baekhyun struggles, the more brazen Yixing becomes. 

On the outside, Baekhyun does his best to mask his excitement, but internally, there’s a fire flickering in the pit of his stomach; an intense, heady throb that courses through Baekhyun’s veins.

Wherever Yixing touches him, Baekhyun curls into it, although his movements might be unconscious. Yixing’s not even sure Baekhyun knows that his legs have spread just a tad wider, or that he twitches every time Yixing gropes handfuls of soft black cotton and squishy, supple flesh. His visceral reactions don’t stop as Yixing continues his ministrations, massaging the entirety of Baekhyun’s thigh, up and down, up and down. Over and over again, all the while watching Baekhyun squirm in his seat and murmur game commentary with lowered eyes and barely-concealed lust in his voice. 

“Gonna, uhm, grab some items real quick,” Baekhyun announces, pressing ‘B’ to go back to base and biting his cheek when Yixing’s fingers walk up the side of his hip to once again sneak under his shirt. Baekhyun shudders subtly while Yixing lays the whole of his warm, calloused palm on the gamer’s pale, smooth skin and rubs little circles into his lower tummy before his fingers slide just underneath his waistband and glide teasingly along there as well. God, Baekhyun’s heart can’t possibly beat any faster.

Yixing eyes him eagerly, watching how Baekhyun’s lips purse as he bites down on the inside of his cheek. It’s absolutely adorable, and he almost tells Baekhyun this before remembering that he’s still streaming. With three fingers still hooked under the waistband of Baekhyun’s sweats, his thumb ventures down on the outside to the sizable bulge in Baekhyun’s sweatpants, then stops. As fun as it is to tease Baekhyun, Yixing still wants confirmation from the gamer before he continues touching him. Luckily for Yixing, Baekhyun seems to know what he’s waiting for. 

Warning: Explicit Content 

“K-kyoong,” Baekhyun reads a viewer comment after scanning the chat to find what he wanted on his left screen where the comment section ticks by. “‘Is it okay--to play AP Blitzcrank mid?’ Of course!” Baekhyun nods emphatically. “You can d-do--” A thumb immediately presses into his sensitive frenulum, and Baekhyun nearly moans, “wh-whatever you want. There aren’t any, ah, um, hard rules.” Baekhyun finishes before clamping his mouth shut and furiously suppressing all his reactions.

The elder observes every change in Baekhyun’s facial expression, silently laughing at how Baekhyun’s lax mannerisms have shifted into something more guarded and tense while reveling in how amazingly easy it is to provoke a response from the gamer. _God, his expressions are to die for._ A gorgeous flush creeps up Baekhyun’s cheeks and he nervously pats his fringe of chestnut-brown bangs down over his eyes as Yixing pulls back out from under the waistband and gently scrabbles along the gamer’s erection with just the tips of his fingers. His hand dips lower to cup the soft bulge of balls nestled just under his dick. 

“Fuck!” Baekhyun curses, and Yixing clamps his free hand over his own mouth to keep from laughing. Baekhyun lets himself die in the team fight for an excuse to his outburst. 

“I’m getting fucking s-sloppy,” Baekhyun hides his face in his hands to buy himself a few precious seconds of privacy while Yixing trails two fingers up his sweatpants along the underside of his cock. “Dammit.” It’s absolutely impossible to stay silent with Yixing’s clever, mischievous fingers now circling under the outline of the flared head of his cock. The skater can feel himself filling out as well, insanely turned on by the naughtiness of the situation and all of Baekhyun’s pliant reactions to his gamble for attention. Baekhyun’s lips are pinker from biting them than from the lip tint that Yixing had applied for him earlier. His cheeks are flushed from concentration and arousal, and his eyelashes flutter every time Yixing so much as crooks a finger. It’s only a few more minutes to Yixing, but it feels like an eternity to Baekhyun as Yixing feels him up over his sweatpants. When Yixing finally lays the entirety of his hand over Baekhyun’s clothed dick and wraps his fingers around it--hungrily watching Baekhyun’s legs jerk and him immediately trying to close them. Yixing reaches out with his other hand and pulls them open again, tapping him twice on the knee. _Stay._ Baekhyun trembles in nervous anticipation, and Yixing has to hide his silent laughter once more, throwing his head back and squeezing his eyes shut as his chest moves up and down. He isn’t even doing anything; it’s just a hand wrapped around Baekhyun’s dick. It’s almost too cute for Yixing to bear. 

“Mmmm!” Baekhyun hums in what seems like frustration to the audience, but in replacement of what should’ve been a long, throaty moan. It’s too much--the teasing little touches on his inner thigh; the slow, maddeningly determined buildup; the novel and intense feelings that Yixing coaxes from his body. Baekhyun’s legs tremble. He can hardly even process the pleasure and sensory overload when Yixing strokes his hand up and down his shaft just twice, moving the fabric with him and satiating the building ball of pressure in Baekhyun’s gut while at the same time riling him up even more. God, he _needs._ It’s not even that the stimulation itself is too overbearing; rather, the entire situation at hand, coupled with Baekhyun’s own inexperience with sex makes everything ten times as intense for him. 

_Baobei,_ Yixing thinks while he watches Baekhyun squirm prettily and feels his thighs clench and twitch with every slow upstroke. _My baobei._ Of course Baekhyun has to suppress his whimpers and stare stony-faced with gritted teeth at the screen in front of him. Nobody else gets to rile him up like this or touch him like this. He is Yixing’s own game, cheeky and mischievous, and Yixing takes it as a personal challenge to stir him up with a torturous progression of tricks: fondling, caressing, kneading. Baekhyun’s breath becomes labored while Yixing tickles his fingers along either side of his dick before taking it up in his hand again and giving him a few more strokes. When Yixing squeezes just a little harder and thumbs over the tip of his cock, a small cry bursts from Baekhyun’s lips before he can stop it from slipping out. 

“Ow,” Baekhyun grumbles. “I kicked the wall.” Yixing could die of amusement. It’s enchanting, really--Yixing knows he should go easier on him, but how could he possibly resist drawing things out a little more when Baekhyun is being like this? It’s not as if he was teasing for a means to an end anyways. 

“Can we just finish the game already?” Baekhyun sighs, perhaps a little too long and whiny for the situation at hand. “Thresh, we don’t need to take the turret, just go for the inhibitor? What are we, Bronze 5?” Baekhyun is desperate. He can feel his self-control quickly slipping the more Yixing plays with him. The room is stifling hot and waves of heat wash over him continuously. His sweatpants are such a nuisance, they’re driving him insane. All Baekhyun can do is to breathe somewhat steadily while Yixing rubs little circles into his frenulum, making it feel as if his stomach is dropping out beneath him. The skater has made a complete mess out of him; Baekhyun can feel how wet his underwear is, how he twitches and trembles with every practiced twist of Yixing’s wrist, how he curls his toes furiously and squirms far too much in his seat. He needs to end the game _now._

“Gogogogogo,” Baekhyun’s being reckless with his moves, putting himself in dangerous situations that could possibly throw the game and give the enemy team a perfect opening to win. He doesn’t care. All he wants is his prize. “Nice,” Baekhyun swallows hard when he kills the enemy Ezreal. “Fuck--” he squeaks as Yixing gives him a few long, fast strokes as reward that spark something very dangerous in that ever-swirling ball of pleasure-pressure in his gut, “Finish the game. Please.” 

“ _Baobei, you’re begging now?_ ” Yixing whispers-croons in Mandarin. “So pretty,” Yixing breathes just loud enough so that Baekhyun can hear him but the mic won’t pick up on his words. 

“Finally,” Baekhyun does his best to make himself sound nonchalant, but inside, he has never been so glad to see the blue flames of victory pop up on his screen. “T-took long enough.” God, now he has to get through his ending spiel? He can’t. “O-okay, that’s it for today. Th-ank you to everyone who tuned in for today--ah--and uh, everyone who just joined--” Baekhyun grinds his teeth together. How did Yixing pinpoint his sensitive spots so quickly? “Welcome to the family, it’s always a good time.” Except for today. “I’ll be back s-soon, check my schedule to see when I’m, uh, uhhh, streaming next. Bye guys!” Baekhyun wiggles his fingers at the camera before _finally_ ending the stream and promptly collapsing onto the desk, reaching down to grip Yixing’s wrist tightly with little pants. 

“Shit.” Baekhyun lets out a long, relieved exhale. 

“宝贝，过来. Baobei, come here.” Yixing asks, and Baekhyun peeks out at him shyly. “Come here,” Yixing insists, spreading his legs and patting his thigh. As soon as Baekhyun awkwardly straddles his lap, Yixing pulls him into a kiss while his hand goes back to Baekhyun’s throbbing erection. Baekhyun blindly lets Yixing nibble his bottom lip, too buzzed to do anything more than feebly move his lips against Yixing’s. 

“What you want?” Yixing whispers into his mouth tenderly, rubbing a few soothing circles around Baekhyun’s back and then securing him with a steady arm wrapped around his waist. Baekhyun buries his head in Yixing’s shoulder and clings onto him tightly with both arms around his neck. “Shy?” Yixing croons. The skater chuckles and presses a chaste kiss to Baekhyun’s hair. “So cute. Is this okay?” Yixing inquires, inserting two fingers under the waistband of Baekhyun’s sweatpants and tugging lightly to emphasize his point. Baekhyun mutters something into Yixing’s shirt that sounds suspiciously like ‘I’m gonna fucking pass out.’ 

“Baobei,” Yixing insists again. “Are you okay?” Between spending his time turning beet red and not-so-subtly grinding against Yixing’s stomach, Baekhyun barely registers the question.

“No,” Baekhyun makes out. 

“Want me stop?” Yixing asks, starting to withdraw his hand. 

“No!” Baekhyun answers a little too quickly, then cringes at how needy he must sound. But he _is._ He’s practically vibrating in Yixing’s lap, fidgeting and restless. Yixing trails a hand down to Baekhyun’s hips to hold him still lest he wriggle himself right off Yixing’s thighs. 

_“Okay, okay. I got you. Easy,”_ Yixing murmurs even though he knows Baekhyun won’t understand. But apparently the consoling tone in his voice carries his message clear enough, because Baekhyun calms down a little even though he’s still hiding in the crook of Yixing’s neck. Baek’s sweatpants are comfy and roomy, and Yixing smirks when he dips a hand down to touch the tip of his leaking, pulsing cock and spread the pre-cum around a bit. Upon first contact, Baekhyun jerks and cries out, helplessly turned on. His cock twitches and spurts more pre-cum, sitting hot and heavy in the palm of Yixing’s hand. He’s so hard it almost hurts. When Yixing wraps his fingers around the shaft and pulls upwards slowly, a wanton moan falls from Baekhyun’s lips and Yixing exhales heavily. His little gamer sounds… anguished. Broken. Desperate; needy for anything. 

“这么需要我吗?” Yixing whispers, complacency settling deep in his ego. “Need me?” Baekhyun nuzzles further into Yixing’s neck and nods. His fingers clutch the fabric of Yixing’s shirt and grip tightly while the elder gives him a few easy strokes, grazing the leaking tip of Baekhyun’s cock each time. The younger’s hips buck up involuntarily into the warm, tight fist that Yixing makes. His brain might not know what he wants, but his body does, and Baekhyun follows that instinct blindly, trusting Yixing to make him feel good. When Yixing grazes the ultra-sensitive part of his cock just under the head, Baekhyun cries out in pleasure. 

“Right there?” Yixing whispers, rubbing circles around the spot with his thumb. Baekhyun spasms and cums without warning. Streaks of white drip down his cock and over Yixing’s hand, which keeps stroking, milking Baekhyun’s orgasm out of him. Baekhyun shudders and continues to keen throughout his entire comedown. Only when Baekhyun’s mewls border on discomfort from overstimulation does Yixing stop, gently releasing his deflating cock. For a while, Baekhyun breathes heavily into Yixing’s neck and Yixing just holds him still, patting his back, whispering foreign phrases of praise and compliments into Baekhyun’s ear. 

_“Will you look at me?”_ Yixing asks tenderly, gently pushing on Baekhyun’s chest to get him to sit upright and look at Yixing. The sight that greets him is almost more than Yixing can bear. Baekhyun’s bangs are damp with sweat, and his cheeks are the prettiest shade of flushed red. His lip tint is slightly smeared from moving against Yixing’s neck and from the kisses, making him look thoroughly debauched and absolutely delicious. Yixing smiles up at him and runs his thumb along Baekhyun’s cheekbone. 

“There you are.” 

“I…” Baekhyun’s at a complete loss for words. 

“Are you okay?” Yixing asks gently. Baekhyun nods mutely, then blushes and glances down. Which makes him blush even more, because he catches sight of himself, their clothes, and Yixing’s hand, all covered in his drying cum. He drops his burning red face into his hands. 

Explicit Content End  
Yixing teased Baekhyun while the latter finished his game and won severely distracted. Baekhyun is pulled into Yixing’s lap after finishing his stream immediately when the game ends and Yixing takes good care of Baekhyun with his hand.

“Baobei,” Yixing insists, gently pulling on one of his wrists. “没事的. It is okay.” He cranes upwards to pepper kisses on Baekhyun’s cheeks, and the younger lets him do so while he collects the last of his scattered thoughts. 

“Clean you up,” Yixing murmurs, reaching for the box of tissues on Baekhyun’s desk. He wipes away what he can, then lets Baekhyun get up from his lap so he can make a dash to the bathroom. Yixing washes his hands in the kitchen sink and futilely dabs at the stains on his shirt while Baekhyun hides in the bathroom. The elder is thoroughly amused, to say the least, as he perches on the edge of Baekhyun’s unmade bed and waits for him to return. When he does, freshly changed and bare-faced once again, he makes a beeline for his dresser instead of Yixing. 

“You’re fine with League, right?” 

“What?” A t-shirt is tossed to him and Yixing unfurls it to reveal one of Baekhyun’s old SKT team shirts. 

“You can’t wear your shirt home.” Baekhyun goes pink at the implication while Yixing resists the urge to bury his face in the shirt and squeal like a 13-year old fangirl. 

“Thank you.” Yixing stands up, pulling his t-shirt over his head, clamping a hand over his mouth when Baekhyun shyly turns around to face the wall while Yixing changes. God, that’s too cute. 

“Done?” Baekhyun asks, and gets a back hug in return. “Oh.” Baekhyun’s hands shyly come up and he places them over Yixing’s, which rest on his stomach. Yixing nibbles at his earlobe affectionately and kisses his hair before withdrawing. 

“Should go home,” Yixing states quietly, glancing at the clock on the wall. It’s almost midnight. 

“Oh--yeah. Okay.” Baekhyun meets his eyes shyly. “I’ll… walk you outside, at least.” 

“No need.” Yixing trails behind Baekhyun to the door and stoops to pull his sneakers on. Baekhyun leans against the wall, simply watching him. When Yixing straightens back up, Baekhyun remains where he is, hesitant. 

“Just let me leave?” Yixing asks incredulously. 

“Huh?” 

“No kiss tonight?” 

“I--oh.” Baekhyun pushes himself off the wall and into Yixing’s arms. “Good night.” 

“Good night,” Yixing murmurs, tilting Baekhyun’s chin up and leaning down. “Thank you for invite me over.” 

“Hhhh--yeah. Yeah.” A hint of Baekhyun’s cheeky smile comes back. “Anytime. That shirt looks good on you, by the way.” Yixing ruffles Baekhyun’s hair affectionately. 

“Text me, baobei. ‘Night.” 

\--

“Baek,” Yixing turns his head to muffle his moans into his pillow. The scene is still fresh and it replays over and over again in his mind while he lays in bed that night. It had taken all his resolve to wait this long, and now, he feels unhinged while he finally touches himself. “ _Fuck_ , Baekhyun.” Yixing gasps as his thoughts crumble into waves of pleasure, with only one coherent name falling from his lips like honey. “ _Baobei_.” 

  
  
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> We're back and uhh... better than ever? :D Thank you for waiting! We worked really hard on this update so I'd love to hear your feedback ;)  
> Your uhh chapterly dose of music  
> [Yixing FS](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fBhH1hV_-AA)  
> [Jinki SP](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8u57_cn4EtM) and this would go with various soundtracks from "Turandot" XD  
> [Minho SP](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fNk9rvacryo)  
> I kept Arane up like way too late finishing this chapter so give her a big thank you <3 Okay that's it for now! Will be back~
> 
> \--
> 
> What do you think of the rating change? Did you prefer this story being "Mature"?
> 
> We are looking forward to your feedback and comments as always~
> 
> I hope the next update will take us less long, so see you soon! <3


	15. Chapter 15

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> With the last chapter we started using a work skin. If you have work skins disabled in your settings, please consider enabling them before reading this work for your viewing experience. We will test if things display well in various browsers and mobile platforms, but not how things will look without work skin. If you are experiencing issues due to a custom AO3 skin you are using, please kindly let us know in the comments. Thank you!

Kim Jonghyun is many things: a radio host and DJ; a mother figure; an indulgent hyung; a cook; a doctor; a shoulder to cry on. But he is not a skater. He has only stepped foot onto the ice for public skate outings with Taemin, he cannot do anything more than grip onto railings and stumble around in plastic blue skates. He is a complete novice here, and it is absolutely out of line to voice his opinions and concerns for Taemin’s figure skating career. Who is he to give the reigning World Silver Medalist advice on his jumps and spins, to call out GOEs and correct his air positions? To offer his take on music choices when he quite literally does not know how it feels to be in Taemin’s shoes? Well, it’s a good thing that Jonghyun has been mother-hyung to a proud, stubborn teenager for years now, because taking care of a proud, stubborn, teenage  _ skater _ is a task that requires hundreds of different techniques. When the 14-year old first came to Seoul--wide-eyed, already full of ambition, albeit naive--Jonghyun thought ‘care’ was simply wheedling food into him, ushering him to sleep after too many episodes of Naruto in a row, and being his shoulder to cry on. What he didn’t expect were hours upon hours of late night YouTube marathons, trying to differentiate a Flip from Lutz, analyzing complicated scoring systems, and uncovering layers of cruel, political discourse that goes on behind the scenes. So that when Taemin caught wind of all the speculation and hate surrounding him after his magnificent Worlds performance, Jonghyun could immediately pinpoint the issue, even when Taemin locked himself in his room and refused to be called for dinner, announcing that he was tired.

_ Cute,  _ the critics said, instead of praising his superhuman effort for his country.  _ Cute that he thinks he’s the next ‘big little thing’ just because Hanyu unexpectedly messed up. Cute that he jokes around with the reporters at press conferences and acts so confident in front of the cameras.  _

_ Only 18.  _

_ Just a child.  _

_ No respect for his sunbaes.  _

_ Not even that good. _

_ Has it easy, because Minho paved the way. _

_ Thinks he owns the place.  _

Jonghyun doesn’t miss the tightening of Taemin’s mouth whenever someone calls him ‘adorable’. He knows better than to dismiss Taemin’s music suggestions to his coaches of classical, mature, elegant programs as just personal preference. Jonghyun doesn’t say anything when Taemin changes his skating wardrobe to neutral grays and black, doesn’t say anything when he works out more than he ever has, doesn’t say anything when he snaps at Jonghyun to stop babying him so much in public, but Jonghyun knows. 

Kim Jonghyun is not a skater. But he’s nurtured, protected, and scolded Lee Taemin for years. He doesn’t need to be. 

“Taeminnie,” Jonghyun places a hand on his shoulder, gently shaking him awake. “Wake up.” Taemin feigns sleep for a few more seconds, but unfortunately for him, Jonghyun is persistent. “Taeminnie, you have to get up now.” The skater groans and opens one eye to find Jonghyun looking down at him with an expression far too cheerful for 4:30 am in the morning. 

“You have practice in an hour and a half.” 

“No,” Taemin whines, rolling over and clutching the covers to his chest. Jonghyun gives up on coaxing and plonks himself down onto the skater unceremoniously. 

“Nooo, hyung,” Taemin complains while Jonghyun resolutely hooks a leg around Taemin’s and pinches his cheeks. 

“You gotta. Get up. I have something for you.” 

“I don’t want to.” 

“You’ll like it. And Kibum will as well. And Minseok. At least, I hope you’ll like it.” Jonghyun ignores the petulant pout on Taemin’s face and forcibly tugs him to sit up in the sheets. The younger blinks sleepily at him and wiggles his toes, then brings a hand up to rub the side of his face. 

“Guhhh.” 

“Here, listen to this.” There are earbuds being poked into Taemin’s ears. A heavy, sensual beat blasts through the speakers, and Taemin screeches in protest, ripping the earbuds out. 

“Yah! Hyung--” 

“Sorry, sorry, I forgot to turn it down. Here--c’mon, Taem--”

“I’m tiredddd,” Taemin’s tone is high-pitched with annoyance. “I wanna sleeeppp.” 

“I know you’re tired,” Jonghyun is full of infinite patience for the perpetually exhausted skater in the midst of preparing for the next skating season. “But you have to get up now anyways. Here,” Jonghyun extends the earbuds and his phone out to him, prompting Taemin’s independence. “Have a listen.” 

“What is this?” Taemin grumbles, inserting the earbuds and turning the volume down before pressing play. Jonghyun refuses to answer any of his questions until the entire song plays through once. “It’s good,” Taemin comments blandly. He’s still half-asleep. “S’it yours?” 

“Yes.” The radio host and DJ occasionally plays around with music once in a while as well, composing and mixing beats and tracks just for fun. 

“Yeah, it’s good,” Taemin murmurs, stretching upwards and yawning. “Nice job.” 

“I made it for you. To use as your short program this year.” There. He’s dropped the bomb. Taemin stills his movements, save the jerk of his head as he stares at Jonghyun, suddenly very alert and wide-eyed. “What do you think?” Jonghyun tilts his head casually, but his heart is laced with intentions. 

“Wait, let me listen to it again.” Taemin pulls out the earbuds and plays the track out loud in the bedroom, closing his eyes while the slow, sensual song plays once more. In his mind, he tries to picture the story that the music makes him visualize, then tries to portray that with his vision of how it would look on the ice. “This is daring, hyung.” Taemin shifts a little in the sheets when the song fades out. 

“I know. But you could do it.” Jonghyun tells him; places trust in him. “It would be jaw-dropping to watch you skate to this. It doesn’t have the same impact when an older, more experienced Senior skater does it. But it’s up to you,” Jonghyun adds as a level of uncertainty. Taemin is holding the reins. He is capable of making this decision. “If you can’t see yourself doing this type of concept--” 

“Oh, no. I can definitely see it.” There’s something of a sly smile tugging at the corner of his lips, a mischievous glint in his eye. “I’m just wondering if I’ll get a deduction for inappropriate music.” 

“It’s not that bad, is it?” Jonghyun takes Taemin’s lightheartedness as a sign of acceptance. ~~And victory.~~

“Should be okay. I’ll ask Kibum and Minseok about it. And Kyungsoo basically knows the ISU rulebook by heart, so he’ll know if it’s too much or not.” 

“So you want to try it?” 

“I do, I really do.” Taemin hauls himself out of bed, suddenly excited about today’s practice. “I want to surprise people; this is the perfect way to do so.” 

All three coaches are deep in discussion at their usual place along the sideboards when the skaters get on for practice. 

“Jonghyun made a song for me,” Taemin announces to them without preamble when he drops his guards, tissue box, and water bottle to the ground. Minseok looks intrigued, Kyungsoo annoyed, and Kibum skeptical. 

“Could we hear it?” Minseok speaks for all of them. “What type of concept is it?” 

“Wooo~” Taemin waves his hand airily and does a mini body roll to insinuate. Minseok laughs at this. Kibum’s eyes shoot up even further. 

“You want to do a sexy concept for your short program?” He questions. “I thought you would want to stick to theatrical and grand.” 

“Nuu. I want versatility.” Taemin plays the song out loud, cupping his hand around the bottom of his phone as a makeshift speaker. Minseok claps a hand to his mouth when he hears the first two 8-counts, and Kibum looks at a triumphant Taemin in incredulity. 

“Is it too much?” Taemin asks when the song finishes, turning to Kyungsoo. 

“No.” Kyungsoo’s face offers no expression, but he speaks bluntly. “If you want that, it’s fine.”

“Er…” Minseok’s mouth twitches amusedly. “You’re always full of surprises, Taemin-ah.” 

“D’you think we could do it?” Taemin asks hopefully. “Because I know this wasn’t our planned genre, but I still haven’t found anything I really love, and Jonghyun made this for me. He said I could portray it really well, and I can see myself skating to it as well.” 

“You CAN skate to it,” Minseok chews his lip. “From the technical side, your skating skills, carriage, transitions--all of that is definitely enough to keep up with the music. But I--I’ll speak bluntly--I’m not sure if I can see you portraying that level of sex appeal.” Kibum jabs a thumb to Minseok in agreement. 

“If you want to do a sensual concept later on in your career, perhaps we can revisit that path. But it’s not really necessary to showcase yourself in that light,” Kibum’s mouth twists to the side appraisingly. “It is OK if you are still developing your seniority, because you are.” 

“But I want to do it. I can see myself doing it.” Taemin is nothing if not stubborn. “I want this to be my short program for this season.” 

“Do you want to do it because you can actually see yourself being this character, or because Jonghyun composed the song for you?” Kyungsoo gets tired of Kibum and Minseok’s hedging and decides to ask the question for both of them. 

“It’s NOT about that. I’m grateful that he composed it for me. Up until this point, we were all completely stumped as to what music to use for my short this year. But the second I heard this one, I liked it.” Taemin is businesslike now; his tone brokers no argument. “It’s an opportunity to show a side of me that has, to this point, been completely unexplored. This song is my short program.” 

Kibum knows better than to argue when Taemin is like this. He waves a careless hand. “Do whatever you want. Don’t cry about it if you realize it doesn’t work out in the middle of the year and you have to find a new short program one month out from Grand Prix.” 

“If you really like it that much, I won’t make you do it alone,” Minseok promises. “I’ll help you with the concept.” 

“You can take him now.” Kibum tells Minseok. “We’ll swap; I can work with Sehun right now and then take Taemin after him.” 

“Sure. In that case, why don’t you just improv to it over the loudspeaker?” Minseok asks, holding his hand out for Taemin’s phone. “Just so I can see what’s going through your head with this.” 

“What is this?” Jinki asks bewilderedly to nobody in particular when the song begins playing. “Who’s music is this?” 

“Taemin’s,” Minho comes up behind Jinki, trying to hold in his laughter. “It’s Taemin’s.” 

“No way.” 

“It is.” Minho motions to Taemin who stands in the middle of the rink, improvising. “Look.” 

“Oh, my God.” 

“Oh no,” Jongin whispers to himself when the lyrics start. He isn’t even looking where he’s going; simply gliding down the ice, completely fixated on Taemin as he does a spread eagle, running greedy hands down over the back of his neck and the sides of his own waist. “Oh, no, ohno, ohnonono…” 

_ “You could not be more obvious right now,”  _ Yixing teases Jongin when he skates past, reaching out to close Jongin’s mouth for him. The younger hadn’t even realized he had gone slack-jawed. 

Baby, I’m a slave

“I will die,” Jongin tells his skates. 

Baby, I’m a slave for you

“Oh my God,” Jongin can’t stop watching while Taemin does something interesting with his hips and tilts his head back, running his fingers through his hair. “Oh no. Nonononono,” 

Baby, I’m a slave

Slave

Baby, I’m a slave, slave for you

“HELP!” Jongin barrels into the apartment straight after morning practice, dropping his skating bag with a thud. Chanyeol bursts out of a door in a panic to find Jongin with all four limbs still attached to him, breathing hard, and very distressed. 

“What happened?” 

“I’m a GONER,” Jongin groans. By this point, Chanyeol’s figured out that it’s just his roommates' usual dramatics. He watches Jongin pace back and forth in front of the front door, becoming more and more amused by the minute. “The LYRICS! Oh no, the, the, hyung… he--he has hip rolls, he has body rolls, hnghhhh,” Jongin reaches up to grip his hair in distress. “You know what he did? He closed his eyes and he--he had his hands under his shirt and ohmygodddd, Chanyeol, tell me what to do.” 

“New… program?” Chanyeol deduces. 

“Help, he’s so… so… he’s so dreamy, so hot, oh my God, puhleasee--” 

“I thought you said he had squishy cheeks and you wanted to cuddle him.” 

“No, nono. I retract that statement. I want to be choked out,” Jongin states, feeling a little wild and reckless from practice that morning. “He doesn’t need to be my slave, I’ll be his slave. He can throw me across the ice rink and run me over with the Zamboni.” Chanyeol is beside himself with laughter while Jongin thirsts. “I--I can’t make it a whole season with that short program. I can’t even look at him across the rink without eye-fucking him.” 

“You’re disgusting when you’re in love.” Chanyeol moves Jongin’s skating bag to the side while Jongin drags his hands down both of his cheeks. 

“What do I DO?” 

“Hell if I know.” Chanyeol derives amusement from the mix of pain and guilty enjoyment written all over Jongin’s face. “Embrace it? I mean, not everyone has the luxury of watching their crush do a sexy program for an  _ entire _ season. A whole YEAR.” Jongin groans, and his roommate’s grin only gets more and more evil as he continues. “What if this is like, his conceptual calling, you know? And he starts doing more and more sexy programs like Sehun--” 

“God, no. I mean, God, yes--” 

“And exhibition programs! He can lay on the ice and hip thrust--” 

“CHANYEOL!” Jongin dies at the image that those words conjure up. 

“For a whole yearrrr,” Chanyeol sing songs. “Nini, you’re so luckyyy.” 

“Nooooo…” Jongin collapses on the ground in a pile of horny anguish. Chanyeol claps gleefully. 

Practice that afternoon is delightfully torturous for Jongin while Taemin begins choreographing his short program right away with Minseok. After 30 minutes of bickering between choreographer and skater, Taemin decides that his starting position will be smack in front of the table of the artistic panel judges along the right side of the rink in a competition. To Jongin’s chagrin, this positioning means that Taemin will be right in front of him anytime Jongin goes to get water along the sideboards. Or blow his nose. Or even when he goes to drop his jacket off. Just a cursory glance upwards and there are Taemin’s hooded, sultry eyes, making direct eye contact at him while he swivels his hips per Minseok’s suggestion, pretending Jongin is one of the judges. Every time Jongin is riveted to the spot, unable to move until Taemin skates away. This is especially inconvenient in his lesson when Kyungsoo explains technique to an unresponsive, Taemin-ized Jongin. 

“Hello?” Kyungsoo snaps his fingers in front of Jongin’s glazed-over eyes. “Are you fucking listening?” 

“Huh? Yes, Coach-nim.” Taemin moves away, and lifts his spell on Jongin. 

“No, you’re not. If you don’t want to listen, we may as well cut the lesson short.” 

“I’m listening,” Jongin shuffles his skates meekly. “I’m sorry.” 

“Quad Flip again. If you don’t fix what I just told you, don’t bother coming back for more corrections.” Jongin skates off, still extremely preoccupied with Taemin’s heavy-lidded gaze and plump lips, red from exercise. How would they feel against Jongin’s chapped ones? Does Taemin make that face in the bedroom? Jongin’s mind is anywhere but his Quad Flip as he gathers speed to go into it. How is it even humanly possible, Jongin thinks as he turn backwards and reaches with his right foot to pick into the ice, to be such an adorable, pretty boy one second and turn into a sexy, dangerous man the nex--

“GOOD BOY!” Kyungsoo’s voice, deep and approving, rings out through the rink and--wait, Kyungsoo is  _ smiling? _ Why is Jongin on one foot? Why isn’t he sliding across the ice in a fall as usual? Is that Kibum screaming? Jongin’s mind connects back to reality as he glides-- _ glides?-- _ smoothly out of a  _ landed _ Quad Flip. 

“I landed it?” Jongin whispers while Kibum punches a fist into the air in triumph. Landed it? His first Quad Flip? 

“OHMYGOD!” Jongin puts his foot down and screams, jumping up and down on his toe picks. “OHMYGOD!” There’s a pair of arms being thrown around him and Jongin embraces whoever it is mindlessly, screaming in their ear as they both jump up and down. 

“YOU DID IT!” Taemin hugs Jongin tightly, having practically flown across the ice to get to him the second he saw Jongin land out of the corner of his eye. Jongin’s heart threatens to burst with the praise in Taemin’s voice, the wide smile just for him, how tightly Taemin clings to him in their excitement. Yixing comes up behind him and embraces Jongin as well, repeating a phrase over and over in Mandarin, then Minho and Jinki pile onto them and Sehun burrows under arms and legs to crowd himself into the messy group hug. All the while Taemin is pressed closer against Jongin, who’s still beside himself with disbelief and shock, and Jongin can feel the warmth of Taemin’s sweaty body flush against his; hear his excited, proud laughter in his ear. Jongin could die happy, right here, surrounded by his rink family. When they finally break apart, Kibum promptly snatches him up in a fierce, loving embrace as well. 

“Knew you had it in you, look at you go. That was perfect, Nini.” 

“Nini!” Minseok’s hug is proud and elated. “Where on earth did that come from, huh? That was amazing!” Jongin beams while Minseok ruffles his hair. 

“Good boy,” Kyungsoo repeats, smiling broadly when Kibum lets go. Jongin timidly curls into a gruff one-armed hug. “Was it that difficult?” Jongin laughs, full-bellied and free. 

“No, Coach-nim.” 

“A coffee on me?” Taemin asks, beaming at Jongin and punching him lightly on the arm. “I knew you could do it, Nini.” 

“Ah, I--I don’t drink coffee,” Jongin smiles at the offer, though. “It’s too bitter for me.” At this, Taemin’s cheeks puff out even more in amusement. 

“I’m not a coffee person either. Then I’ll buy you banana milk or something after off-ice. Everyone likes banana milk.” 

“I love banana milk!” Jongin bursts into giddy laughter. Everything is funny when practice goes as good as it possibly can. 

“Now, if you had landed it sooner, like two weeks ago,” Taemin teases, “I could’ve bought you lunch or something. But not now. Kibum will kill us.” 

“Feelsbad.” Jongin’s heart squeezes with Taemin’s pout. “It’s okay. Thank you!” 

“Of course!” Taemin’s countenance is warm. “It’s not everyday that you get to land a new jump. It’s the best feeling in the world.” 

“I wasn’t even thinking about the jump when I went into it,” Jongin tells him honestly, feeling his cheeks heat up a little. “It just kinda… happened? One second I was setting up, the next I was on one foot.” He decides to skip over the exact details of what he was thinking.  _ Yeah, I was just thinking about what else your hips could do other than wiggle in front of the judges. No biggie. _

“Oh, yeah. I land all my jumps like that, too. Funny how it comes when you just shut your brain off and go on autopilot.” Taemin shrugs. “But then again, it’s not surprising. I bet you skate your best programs when your mind goes blank during competitions.” 

“Yeah,” Jongin agrees, vaguely contemplating how effective thinking about Taemin’s lips mid-competition would be for his nerves. “I wonder why?” 

“Muscle memory, of course.” Taemin says it cutely, emphasizing each syllable. “You just have to let go sometimes and let your body do what you’ve trained it to do.” 

“I guess.” Jongin’s smile is uncontainable. He’s on top of the world today. 

Kibum appraises the group of skaters who meet up with him at the gym a walking distance away from the ice rink, silently skimming heads and faces. He nods in approval when there are no absences. 

“Great. I think everyone should be familiar with how group off ice’s work, but for Jongin, I’ll just go over it super quickly.” 

“Er--you don’t have to, Coach--” Jongin doesn’t want to hold the entire session up. 

“It’s fine,” five voices immediately tell him. 

“Yeah, so 4 sessions a week, Monday through Wednesday, and Saturday. The order is random, but in every given week we’ll have 2 sessions of cardio, 1 strength, and 1 off-ice rotation. You will work in pairs for all exercises or groups if I say so. Your pair is assigned on Monday and that’ll be your partner for the whole week. Utilize that; push each other to train harder. No slacking off. Got it?” Kibum looks sternly at everyone. “Okay, starting groups: Jinki-Taemin, Ming-Sehun, Yixing-Nini. 40 minutes on the outside track, pace yourself but push each other. Count your laps; I’ll be out in just a minute.” Jongin stuffs earbuds in his ears as he follows the small group of skaters out the door and around the back of the gym where a large track surrounds a flat, grassy area for aerobics or other sports. 

“Tell me if you need slow down or if you want, just speed up,” Yixing tells him, forming a playlist as well. Jongin nods. “We target 7k but would be nice if can make 7.5.” 

“I’m just gonna target 1k for now,” Jongin shakes out all his limbs. Yixing laughs at this. 

“Okay.” 

“I have the timer,” Jinki tells everyone. “I’ll call out halfway and stop. Stay with your partner, guys.” 

“Jinki-hyung?” Jongin pipes up. “I have a question.” 

“Sup?” 

“I don’t wanna slow Xing-hyung down if I can’t keep up.” 

“No, no,” Yixing shakes his head and Jinki does as well. 

“The point of group off-ice is the dynamic between you and your partner. You try and keep up with him, he tries to stay ahead of you. You aren’t obligated to run side by side, but it’s great if you can. And you shouldn’t let him get more than 1 meter ahead of you. Does that make sense?” 

“Ah, yeah. Yeah, okay.” Jongin is reassured. “Sorry, I--didn’t really get it when I did this last year.” 

“You’re good,” Jinki waves it off. “Any more questions?” 

“Can I leave?” Sehun deadpans. 

“No. Anything else?” Jinki looks around. “Okay, starting… now.” 

About halfway in, Jongin begins to realize just how strategically Kibum’s pairings had been for the first week. Minho, ever so fiercely competitive, ignites Sehun’s fighting spirit and forces him to stay focused instead of slacking off. Jinki and Taemin run practically side by side, both of them silently egging the other on. As for Yixing, the elder is like a metronome, breathing evenly, occasionally glancing behind him to check on Jongin, who feels like he’s dying. Running 7 kilometers without pressure is one thing. Long, leisurely late-afternoon runs around the lake at the park with Chanyeol or Yixing or whoever else will join him are enjoyable. But between Kibum’s occasional yelling and trying to hit their target, Jongin finds himself struggling to keep up while he’s being pressured by his teammates. Which, he supposes, is exactly the point of group off ice. Jongin does his best to keep track of their laps, but he keeps losing count in favor of trying to get some air into his lungs. It feels like Jinki is never going to call time, and when he does, Jongin barely has it in him to walk and breathe instead of just collapsing on the ground. 

“Holy… shit,” Sehun wheezes when they all circle back to where Kibum is standing. “Shit.” 

“How many laps?” Kibum asks. 

“18 ish,” Yixing wobbles his hand. “7 kilometer… ish.” 

“20.” Jinki tells the sky. 

“18.” 

Kibum nods his approval. “Not bad. Okay, you all look beat. Short break, and then let’s go inside.” 

“There’s… more…?” 

“Oh Sehun, you’ve been doing this for 9 years now. YES, there’s more.” Kibum snorts and turns away. Jinki slowly moves towards the pile of water bottles and shed shirts at the edge of the track, but halts when Taemin comes up behind him and presses his forehead in between Jinki’s shoulder blades, breathing hard and laboured. 

“Hyung…” Taemin’s eyes are closed and he sways a little on his feet. Jongin watches him nervously, knowing Taemin probably only has around 400 calories in his system. But he also sees Jinki, whose face is pale and slim from dieting as well. His chest heaves up and down while he attempts to catch his breath, and his light gray shirt is dark with sweat. Still, he wraps an arm behind him around Taemin’s waist and offers his own body as Taemin’s support. Taemin puts quite a bit of weight on him, stumbling a little, but Jinki doesn’t falter. He simply stands there, holding Taemin upright, even though it’s taking all the rest of his nonexistent energy to do so. 

“Hey, hey, you need to eat a little,” Jinki murmurs, trying to keep the quaver of exhaustion out of his voice. “Dieting doesn’t mean no food.” 

“I know.” 

“You shouldn’t have pushed yourself so hard,” Jinki frets. “You should have told me to slow down, or done so on your own.” 

“I’m fine.” 

“Taemin-ah, look at you.” Jinki worries without worrying for himself. “Look at you. Please promise you’ll eat something. I’ll call Jonghyun if you don’t eat. Are you going for a drink with Nini later? Get yourself something, too, okay? I’m going to tell him.” 

“Yes.” Taemin clings onto Jinki tightly. 

“Do I need to tell Kibum you can’t do the rest of off-ice?” Jinki threatens. 

“No!” 

“So you’re going to eat something, right?” 

“Yes, hyung.” Taemin drops his head on Jinki’s shoulder. Silently, Minho hands Jinki his water bottle and offers a quick high-five. 

“Okay!” Kibum surveys the skaters surrounding him in various states of exhaustion. Yixing doesn’t bother sitting up on his yoga mat, choosing instead to crane his neck to offer something like attention to his coach’s words. “Great job today. Can I get a number on how everyone feels? 1-10? 10 being the best, 1 being horrible.” There’s a long period of silence as every gauges their physical state. 

“Like.” Jinki breaks the awkwardness first. “A… a 4?”

“Overstatement,” Sehun snorts. “I’m in the negatives.” 

“Yixing?” Kibum turns to him and Yixing startles. 

“Oh, umm… like, like 4,” he goes with Jinki. “Is okay.” 

“So everyone is somewhere in between the negatives and a 4?” Kibum asks, and the rest of the skaters nod tiredly. “Okay, that’s pretty much what I expected. It’ll get better. You’ll be sore tomorrow though,” Kibum adds, unsmiling. “Make sure you guys do at least 45 minutes of warm-up before getting on the ice tomorrow morning. I’ll allow a 30 minute grace period before I expect everyone to be on the ice.” 

“Okay,” Jinki flashes a thumbs up and manages to haul himself to stand upright. “Thanks, Kibum.” 

“Will see you guys later, then. Roll out, stretch before you leave.” Kibum waits until everyone has stood up and bowed before leaving. Yixing promptly sits down on the ground again. 

“Let’s go?” Taemin is saying to Jongin, a small, tired smile gracing his features. Jongin bursts into laughter and says something about how much he’s missed chaotic post-workout excursions. Jinki catches up to both of them and stops Jongin with a hand on his shoulder, then tiptoes upwards to whisper something in his ear. Taemin’s mouth twists slightly, but he doesn’t stop Jinki. 

“Xing,” Minho’s voice comes from above him, and Yixing looks up at his teammate. “Do you wanna come over for dinner at Jinki and my place?” 

“H--oh, okay. Is okay with you?” 

“Yeah, for sure. I just invited you, didn’t I?” Minho offers him a shrewd grin. “Did you bring a change of clothes?” 

“Yeah.” 

“Yeah, so just shower at our place.” 

“Oh, okay. Or I can--” Yixing gestures to the gym showers. 

“You really wanna use those?” Minho offers him a hand and Yixing puts quite a bit of his weight on him as he staggers to his feet. “C’mon, let’s go.” Yixing brushes his sweaty bangs off of his forehead while they wait for Jinki to finish talking to Jongin, then they wait a little more when Jinki glances at Sehun, lying prone on his yoga mat with closed eyes, breathing heavily even after several minutes have passed since they finished their final set. 

“Sehunnie? You okay?” Jinki kneels down next to him somewhat unsteadily. 

“Yeah.” Sehun doesn’t bother opening his eyes. 

“You going home after this? Junmyeon’s?”

“Jun--Jun said he would pick me up from here.” 

“Yeah? Where is he?” 

“Dunno. I’ll be fine, hyung, thank you.” 

“You just call me if you need anything, okay? We’re literally right down the street from here.” One of the perks of moving to Seoul solely for training was that Jinki and Minho were able to pick a convenient, localized apartment that is walking distance to the rink and gym, which saves commuting time. Sehun’s neighborhood is also just a couple of bus stops away from the rink. Jongin lives only a little further away, since he sidled in with Chanyeol and Jongdae when he moved, and they had to compromise on the location between university for the two non-skaters and the rink for Jongin.

“Yeah, I got it.” Sehun assures him. Jinki stands up and collects his things, still glancing back at Sehun. 

“Do you think I should give Junmyeon a call?” He asks Minho worriedly, but Minho shakes his head. 

“I don’t think you have to worry where Junmyeon is involved.” As if on cue, the man himself walks into the gym and immediately zones in on his boyfriend, even when he’s partially hidden behind rows of equipment. He nods to the three oldest skaters as he passes. 

“Is he okay?” Junmyeon asks. 

“Kinda quiet,” Jinki tells him, and Junmyeon’s mouth twists to the side worriedly. 

“Thanks.” 

When the trio gets back to Jinki and Minho’s apartment, Yixing settles down on the couch to wait while Minho showers first. To his surprise, when he pulls out his phone, there are a few messages from Baekhyun. He must’ve missed them while he was working out. 

宝贝 (Baobei) 

宝贝 (Baobei) 

Hey how was group workouts? 

Lmfao I had this rly good play during practice earlier

I’ll send it to you later :3 

Hi~ 

So so tired TT_TT 

To Yixing’s surprise and happiness, Baekhyun texts back just seconds later. 

宝贝 (Baobei) 

宝贝 (Baobei) 

Aw :( 

Wish I could see you

I am with Ming and Jinki 

Have dinner with them

宝贝 (Baobei) 

Sounds fun! 

But I still wish I could see you

Come to rink ?

宝贝 (Baobei) 

Mmmmmayyyybe

Schedule tight

Miss me? 

当然了... 

Of course

“Xing, Jinki said you can shower before him.” Minho wanders into the living room, sees Yixing suppressing a smile at his phone screen, and doesn’t bother continuing. “Jinks, go shower, he’s talking to his husband.” 

“What?” Yixing laughs at this. 

宝贝 (Baobei) 

宝贝 (Baobei) 

Mmmm I bet ;) 

But I think you enjoy yesterday more than me?

宝贝 (Baobei) 

Okay :V 

I usually

Last a lot longer than that

Uh huh

宝贝 (Baobei) 

Don’t believe me? 

You should come back then ;) 

Bby just try me 

Yixing tries very hard not to laugh, but it’s difficult. The image hasn’t left his head for more than ten minutes since last night: Baekhyun’s shy whimpers, the way he twitched at just the tip of a finger, how he kept himself buried in Yixing’s shoulder the entire time. And here he is, telling Yixing he isn’t easy. God, Baekhyun is just too adorable for his own good. 

“What are you laughing at?” Minho glances over at him teasingly. “Is he that funny?” 

“可爱,” Yixing tells him, desperately hiding his smile behind the back of his hand so as to not look like an idiot. Although Minho will tease him no matter what. “Gah, so cute.” 

宝贝 (Baobei) 

Are you sure? 

宝贝 (Baobei) 

Do I look easy to you? 

Yes… 

宝贝 (Baobei) 

I know you didn’t just say that :( 

Fine

I’ll make you work for me 

Make me fall for you

<3 

“Xing! Shower’s yours!” Jinki calls. 

“Okay!” Yixing stands up from the couch, still carefully typing out his next sentence. 

宝贝 (Baobei) 

哎哟喂

宝贝你太可爱了 ><

Aish, you so cute

Okay

Have to shower, talk later 

宝贝 (Baobei) 

Oh? 

I like the sound of that ;) 

Wanna show me? 

“我换衣服时你没有转过身吗?” Yixing says out loud to nobody in particular. He’s dying of amusement.  _ Weren’t you the one who turned around when I changed clothes?  _

宝贝 (Baobei) 

真的要看吗？

Really want to see? 

Find time, I show you

<3 

Baobei

Bye~

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ISN'T IT COOL?!?!?!?!?!?!?!  
>  DUDE ARANE DID SUCH A GOOD JOB WITH THE FORMATTING  
>  EVERYBODY SAY THANK YOU ARANE  
>  it's SO cool I think it's the coolest thing ever :333333333  
>  Watch me write only text messages just so I can use the work skin  
>  Ahhhh the formatting is so cool OKAY  
>  Here are your musics :3 I'm slowly revealing them all throughout chapters even though some of them are not mentioned!  
>  [Taemin SP :3](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mFFl0Nn0adI)  
>  [Jongin SP (can I just say, I'm so excited to see him skate to this)](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8jzDnsjYv9A)  
>  Okay also: Jongin world domination. Yes. Give me Kolo or give me death.  
>  See you all next time! <333333
> 
> Rest in pieces, Kim Jongin =D. This short program will provide a lot of fun for everyone involved~
> 
> As you might have seen I had a little fun with CSS and dabbled around with a new scene divider, lyrics formatting and embedded chat. I tried to model the chat after Kakaotalk ([reference image](https://image.winudf.com/v2/image1/Y29tLmtha2FvLnRhbGtfc2NyZWVuX2tvLUtSXzBfMTU2ODkwMDE3M18wNDc/screen-0.jpg?fakeurl=1&type=.jpg)). Let me know what you think about the styling in the comments!
> 
> Thank you for continuing to follow our story and see you soon~
> 
> P.S.: I recommend watching the full video that justafei linked to for Taemin's short program. A great performance from a great concert and it will give you an idea just how dire Jongin's situation is =D. If you happen to not be region blocked, enjoy the [concert DVD version](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PW1AXsoPHmg) instead of the fancam linked above.


	16. Chapter 16

“Where do you want to go?” Taemin asks, walking out of the gym next to Jongin. 

“Dunno,” Jongin murmurs, pushing sweaty bangs out of his face. He starts to laugh. “People are going to hate us if we stand too close to them.” 

“Ah, cause we’re so sweaty?” Taemin smiles while they wander aimlessly towards the small plaza of cafes and shops a few blocks away. “It’s alright.” The two of them are too tired to walk with a bounce in their step, but the conversation still flows amiably, save a few awkward pauses here and there. At the end of a long day of hard work, walking in the warmth of the remaining sunshine during early twilight, Taemin’s face glows with golden hour highlight as he points out a small drink cafe for the two of them to go to. Jongin stutters out a murmur of agreement, too busy admiring how Taemin manages to look casually beautiful, even in sweat-soaked workout clothes and with flushed red cheeks. They are shy, awkward friends, and Jongin revels in the warmth of that knowledge. The feeling is that of greeting a roommate for the first time, or perhaps acknowledging a group member in a band. The two make conscious efforts to further their newfound friendship; Jongin shyly approaches Taemin to warm up together; Taemin texts Jongin in order to tell him about his new hobbies. They might not know each other that well yet, but they’re both willing to try. And that thought makes Jongin so unbelievably happy, because _ maybe,  _ a tiny voice in the back of Jongin’s head thinks,  _ maybe they could become more.  _ But for now, he’s content to pick out a healthy-ish drink with Taemin, then try to turn the elder down as he takes out his wallet. 

“You don’t have to buy, I just wanted to hang out,” Jongin blurts, then goes pink at how clingy he must sound. He silently prays it doesn’t show through his workout flush. But Taemin seems to like it, because his cheeks round out--Jongin realizes with a jolt that they’re so much thinner than they used to be--and he laughs at Jongin’s honesty. 

“You landed your Flip, don’t be silly.” Taemin nudges him a little. “It’s my treat.” 

“That’s twice you’ve treated me now,” Jongin mumbles.

“I’m older than you.” 

“But I can still pay--” 

“Hi~” Taemin walks up to the counter, effectively ending their banter. A warm feeling rises up in Jongin’s chest at Taemin’s mischievousness. “Could I get two banana milks with no sugar, please?” Jongin looks on, relieved that Taemin had ordered himself a drink, too. Otherwise things would have gotten awkward.  _ Hey Taemin, uhhh, Jinki told me to force you to buy a drink, so you have to… buy a drink?  _ When Taemin hands one of the cups to Jongin, his eyes glimmer with amusement while Jongin playfully glowers at him. _ Maybe one day we’ll tease each other and force the other to pay instead of politely bickering, _ Jongin thinks, taking a sip of the cold beverage and instantly feeling a little more refreshed. 

“Should we sit?” Taemin nods to the table in the corner of the cafe next to the window of the shop. “Ah, I’m so sore…” 

“Me, too. I want to go to a pool,” Jongin laments, taking a seat to rest his sore legs. Taemin huffs as he sits down, wincing a little at the effort it takes. “Water is so nice for soreness.” 

“That does sound nice,” Taemin admits. “Ah! One year--I think it was the first year Yixing-hyung started training with us?--Coach hosted a training camp on the beach. It was Kyungsoo-nim’s idea from working in America. We all rented out a huge beach house and went soft sand running and did off-ice jump rotations by the ocean for two weeks.” Taemin’s eyes are wistful as he recounts the memory to Jongin. “Two hour workouts, three times a day, six days a week. I didn’t even have to pay attention to what I ate because I burned so many calories. Ah, I was so tired, but it was soooo relaxing. All we had to worry about was workouts. Jonghyun-hyung came along and did all our laundry and cooking for us along with Kibum and Minseok-nim.” 

“Oh, I feel bad for Jonghyun-hyung.” Jongin can’t stop smiling as he watches Taemin talk so animatedly. “But it seems so like him to volunteer to do that. Minseok-nim, too.” 

“Hyung said it was his mini vacation.” Taemin chuckles. “He said all he had to worry about was laundry and cooking, so it was nice for him, too. Plus he and Minseok-nim are super close now.” 

“That sounds like such a nice training environment,” Jongin says honestly. “Right by the ocean…” 

“Oh, yeah. Mandatory full-body dunks after every workout. So refreshing.” Taemin’s lips curl up into a smile. “There was an outdoor pool and jacuzzi, too. We had an 11pm curfew because our first workout was early morning, but on the last Saturday night we stayed up until 3am soaking in the jacuzzi, eating sorbet and just talking. It was so fun.” 

“I’m jealous,” Jongin complains, feeling left out. “I want to go.” 

“It would be so fun if Kibum would do that type of thing again,” Taemin agrees. “Maybe we should tell Jinki to bring the idea up to him. I know Kibum enjoyed the experience, too. We got super close with each other, especially with Yixing-hyung since he was new.” 

“It’d be amazing if we could do that,” Jongin agrees wholeheartedly. “Wait, but I’m curious--so you didn’t skate for two weeks? Wasn’t the transition back to ice difficult?” 

“Ah!” Taemin snaps his fingers. “That’s what we thought, but when we got back on the ice, it was like we had never left. Kyungsoo-nim said it was because the soft sand made our reflexes work more, and of course we were better in shape than we had ever been.” 

“I see.” Jongin sips on his drink, now lost in the paradise of two weeks of living together with his rink family, just working out, taking walks along the beach, unworried; insouciant. In the midst of a busy, stressful pre-competition season, the idea sounds like the best one in the world. 

“Here.” Taemin’s holding his phone out to him, and Jongin takes it to study the stunning beach sunset picture that Taemin shows him. 

“Oh, that’s pretty. Did you take this at the, uh, the beach camp?” 

“Yep, I found it when I was scrolling through my camera roll the other day. But I’ve been picking up photography and photo editing,” Taemin shares eagerly, swiping right once to show Jongin his edited version. Jongin audibly gasps. 

“Oh, wow, Taemin-ah…” The sunset’s colors are more vibrant; the foreground is clearer and brighter. “This looks like something they would put in a magazine or something…” 

“Really?” Taemin bursts into laughter. “Thank you,” he manages sweetly, and Jongin’s heart thumps frantically. “I took this one recently…” Taemin scrolls through multiple videos and pictures to find it. “Ah! This.” 

“That’s beautiful,” Jongin breathes, staring at the picture of the Seoul sunset over the skyline of the city. 

“That’s the view from my apartment,” Taemin supplies. 

“The colors… the composition… this is gorgeous.” Jongin hands Taemin’s phone back to him. “I’m jealous of your apartment view.” 

“Oh?” Taemin begins giggling again. “Yeah, it’s really nice. So you think I took it well? The picture?” 

_ Oh my gosh, he likes compliments.  _ Jongin’s heart melts. “It’s so beautiful.”  _ Like you.  _ Taemin’s eyes light up at the praise as he sips on his drink. 

Junmyeon can immediately tell that Sehun isn’t his usual affectionate, unperturbed self when the skater doesn’t immediately try to engulf Junmyeon in a smelly, sweaty hug when he goes to pick him up. He remains relatively silent on the entire trip back to Junmyeon’s apartment. On the short bus ride back, Sehun doesn’t reach out for Junmyeon’s hand, instead fiddling with the strap of his duffel bag which carries his skates, and studying the dirty black floor. Junmyeon leans against the pole in front of Sehun’s seat, simply offering him a quiet presence. 

“You okay?” Junmyeon asks just once while they’re walking back to Junmyeon’s apartment from the bus stop. Sehun shrugs. Junmyeon decides to let the subject drop until Sehun has taken a shower and picked his way through his small serving of seaweed soup and rice. 

“What do you want to do tonight?” Junmyeon inquires, taking Sehun’s empty bowl from him. “You have practice in the morning, so we can’t stay up too late. And you should roll out, shouldn’t you? You must be sore.” 

“I guess.” 

“Why don’t you go do that while I do the dishes?” Junmyeon’s tone is gentle and undeterred by Sehun’s short answers. “And then we can call it a night?” 

“K.” Sehun goes to retrieve his foam roller stashed in a corner of Junmyeon’s cleaning supply closet and sits down on the living room rug, placing the cylindrical foam roller under his thigh. He props himself up with his arms to roll back and forth on it, working out all the tightness and knots in his sore legs. After a while, Junmyeon situates himself on the couch and absentmindedly scrolls through his phone while Sehun shifts positions to roll out his abductors, adductors, and quads. Sehun revels in the pressure rolling out puts on his sore muscles, which in turn stimulates his blood flow; even though it hurts, it’s a mindless, easy task that leaves Sehun feeling physically and mentally more relaxed when he finishes. 

“Done?” Junmyeon glances up at him from over his phone, as if he hadn’t been sneaking long glances at Sehun the entire time he was rolling out. “Want to come up here, or go sit in bed?”

Sehun grimaces as he stands up, but motions towards the bedroom. Junmyeon sits on the couch for just a minute more before getting up to wrap his arms around Sehun’s waist and smile at him through the mirror while Sehun brushes his teeth. 

“Cheer up,” he tells Sehun, as a way to let Sehun know that his discomfort hasn’t gone unnoticed. Sehun’s straight eyebrows only furrow together. Junmyeon changes into his pajamas while Sehun has his turn in the bathroom, then goes to brush his teeth and wash his face. The skater is already under the covers when Junmyeon flicks the ceiling lights off and joins him in bed, the bedside lamp as the only source of illumination in the dark apartment. 

“How was practice today?” Junmyeon asks as usual, cradling Sehun to lean against his chest like an oversized puppy. Sehun wraps his arms around Junmyeon’s waist and slips a leg in between Junmyeon’s thighs, burrowing in his boyfriend’s warmth. Junmyeon is a steady comfort, and he grounds Sehun a little. With Junmyeon around, it feels as if things will work out. 

“Jongin-hyung landed his Quad Flip,” Sehun reports quietly, to which Junmyeon smiles. 

“Good for him.” 

“Taemin-hyung has a new short program. It’s sexier than mine.” 

“You’re the sexiest.” Normally, Junmyeon would have expected a dirty joke, but today, Sehun is a little off. 

“Jinki-hyung can barely keep up with Taemin-sunbae while running now.” 

“Mmm. Relatable. He’s getting old like me.” Junmyeon glances at Sehun’s face. “What about you, love? How was your practice?” 

“Fine.” Sehun gets tight-lipped again, but Junmyeon has coaxed rants and worries out of silent, brooding Sehun for many, many years. Besides, Sehun breaks down easily with Junmyeon. All it takes is a hand, reaching out to lay against the skater’s cheek and prompt him to look at his boyfriend, who watches him with quiet, understanding eyes. 

“You can tell me,” Junmyeon kindly assures him, and the wall crumbles, just like that. 

“Idon’tknowifIcandoitbecauseI’msotiredandIcan’tkeepupwithMinhohyungatallandIdon’twannabeinJunior--” 

“Woah, woah. Easy,” Junmyeon pats Sehun’s back a couple of times. “One thing at a time, love.” 

“You know Coach moved me up to Junior,” Sehun’s voice is whiny and petulant, but his worries are genuine. “But I don’t know if I can do it. I get so fucking tired during runs and I can’t keep up with Minho-hyung at all. I don’t even  _ want  _ to be in Junior--Coach just sprung it on me the first day of high intensity training and I didn’t even get a say in it.” Sehun nervously taps his fingers against Junmyeon’s waist as he talks. “All the endurance exercises don’t seem to be working at all. I'm expected to be doing Quads in competition in 2-3 years and I only have two that are still kinda shaky. I have no experience whatsoever, and I’m still wrapping my stupid air position, and I still Flutz my Triple Lutz all the time,” Sehun heaves a breath before continuing his rambling, “and it’s just so much more difficult because now I have to skate a 4-fucking-minute free skate instead of 3:30. The difference is only 30 seconds, so Coach said to suck it up, and everyone is telling me to stop complaining, but it just feels like I’m never going to be good enough to compete the way I want to. I’m trying so hard.” Sehun’s voice is small and miserable by the end. Junmyeon listens patiently the entire time, even though some of the technical terms fly over his head, and gently pats Sehun’s shoulder comfortingly. 

“It sounds difficult,” Junmyeon murmurs. 

“It IS! 30 seconds doesn’t seem like a big difference but it sucks ASS, and there’s just higher expectations overall. Instead of 7 jumps there are 8 now,” Sehun huffs frustratedly. “I just… it feels like everyone is improving except for me. I get yelled at the most out of everyone. Just because I complain doesn’t mean I’m not working.” 

“I know you work hard.” 

“And I have to give everyone else right-of-way, which is fine, but it feels like I can’t get anything done because everyone is so frantic. And I have questions about the choreography but Minseok is too busy so I don’t wanna interrupt him, and it’s just not fair.” Sehun heaves a shuddery sigh, and Junmyeon looks anxiously to see Sehun trying to hold back tears. 

“Oh, Sehun…” Junmyeon sits up a little and slips out of Sehun’s hold to embrace his boyfriend. Sehun sniffles and wraps his arms around Junmyeon’s waist while the elder half-straddles him to tilt his head into Junmyeon’s shoulder. “It’s okay, love.” 

“I’m trying so hard,” Sehun whimpers. “I don’t know if I c-can do it this year.” 

“I know. I know. You work so hard everyday,” Junmyeon murmurs. “You always do your best.” 

“I don’t mean to slack off, but it’s just that I get so out of breath and ex-exhausted--” 

“You should know your limits. It’s OK, baby.” Junmyeon kisses Sehun’s damp hair. “You’ll figure it out,” Junmyeon consoles him. “I can’t help you with your wrapping or your Flutz or your super long free skate. But I know you can do it,” Junmyeon whispers. “I am so proud of you already.” 

“Coach isn’t proud of me. He thinks I’m a dumbass.” 

“Kibum wouldn’t have moved you up if he wasn’t confident in your ability to adapt and improve,” Junmyeon points out gently. “He sees you as a Junior.” 

“I don’t want to be Junior,” Sehun’s voice is muffled, but steady now that he’s gotten his tears under control. “I want to stay in Novice for another year.” 

“You might surprise yourself, love.” Junmyeon drops another kiss into Sehun’s hair. “Do you remember when Kibum wanted to put your Triple Flip into your Novice program last year?” Junmyeon asks as Sehun withdraws from his shoulder. The elder brushes his hand under Sehun’s eyes, wiping away stray tears before pushing strands of hair out of Sehun’s eyes. “You were so against the idea. But how many times did you fall on it in competition last year, love?” 

“Only twice.” Sehun sniffs. 

“Exactly,” Junmyeon consoles. “I know things probably seem difficult because it’s the beginning of the season. There’s always so much to do,” he murmurs, feeling a pang of pity for Sehun. “You have to lose weight, skate twice as much, learn new programs, and add workouts. It’s a lot, isn’t it?” Sehun nods emphatically. “But you will adjust,” Junmyeon reassures him. “I see you doing it every year. You get better and better.” 

“But it just seems like this year nothing is ever going to get better.” Sehun tugs at the hem of Junmyeon’s pajama top. “I’m so stressed out.” Sehun’s lower lip begins to tremble. 

“It’s okay,” Junmyeon croons just before Sehun bursts into tears again. He must’ve suppressed his worries a while by now, Junmyeon realizes as he pulls Sehun into his shoulder. His boyfriend only cries this hard when he really doesn’t know how to cope. “It’s okay, Sehunnie.” Junmyeon holds him close and whispers words of encouragement and praise. He tells Sehun how proud of him he is, how he knows Sehun works so hard, how Sehun’s going to be so good during the season. He is infinitely patient, full of comfort and very used to calming Sehun down, although each time always brings new, amplified worries to soothe away. Sehun slowly cries himself drowsy, comforted by Junmyeon’s steady presence and his arms wrapped around him, rocking him as if he were a small child, patting his back gently. 

“It’s okay,” Junmyeon repeats over and over again, as if chanting Sehun’s name. “You’ll figure it out. I know you will.” Sehun slowly re-emerges with red, puffy eyes. Junmyeon pays no mind to the soaking wet shoulder of his pajama top. “Are you feeling better?” Sehun nods, all of his stress having been cried out. “Do you want me to call Kibum and tell him you’re sick and need a day off?” Junmyeon offers. Sehun shakes his head and burrows into Junmyeon’s chest. “Then are you feeling okay to sleep?” Another wordless nod. “I’ll set an alarm for you.” Junmyeon kisses Sehun’s temple. “And take you to the rink and watch your practice before I go to class tomorrow. Would you like that?” Sehun’s arms tighten around Junmyeon’s waist. “Alright.” Junmyeon confirms quietly, reaching over to set an alarm and shut off the lamp. “Sleep now, love.” 

“Da da dun, dumdumdumdadadumdaumdadadumdadum!” Minho waves Jongin into the rink with way too much enthusiasm for an early morning practice. “Good morning, dear. Today is a beautiful day.” 

“Why? Is practice cancelled?!” Jongin grabs Minho by the shoulders, then wails dramatically when Minho shakes his head in dissent. “Noooo…” 

“Nini!” Taemin comes bounding out of the locker room to find him, practically vibrating with anticipation. “Good morning~” 

“Good morning,” Jongin murmurs back, happy that Taemin is greeting him so eagerly, but albeit confused at the buzz that is palpable in the locker room. “What’s going on?” 

“Hehe, you’ll see.” 

“I’m so confused,” Jongin rubs his eyes sleepily. “It’s too early… and I’m so sore…” 

“Come.” Yixing pats his thighs and Jongin climbs to lay down on the bench. 

“I’m gonna take a nap.” Jongin closes his eyes. “Wake me up before I get yelled at.” 

“OK.” Yixing pats his shoulder. “Good night.” The locker room fills and empties multiple times; Jongin never really does manage to fall asleep on the hard, narrow bench, but he resolutely keeps his eyes shut in the hopes of relaxing for a little longer. He hears Junmyeon’s quiet chatter to Sehun, Jinki and Minho’s muted conversation, and at one point, Jongin feels Yixing shift once to reach out towards somebody, but he doesn’t bother opening his eyes to check. Yixing is a great pillow; combing his fingers absentmindedly through Jongin’s hair, either scrolling through Weibo, watching k-pop videos, or texting Baekhyun. 

“Think we need to warm-up,” Yixing murmurs after a while. “We have 20 minutes.” He gently shakes Jongin’s shoulder. “Nini.” 

“No…” Jongin groans and opens his eyes reluctantly. 

“Sorry.” Yixing gently pulls him upright. “Let’s go, I run with you.” 

“Hyung, I never want to run with you again. You run way too fucking fast.” 

“Too bad. You stuck with me for whole week.” Yixing drags him out the door. “Did they tell you yet?” he asks as Jongin trots next to him stiffly. 

“Tell me what?” 

“Guess not.” Yixing smiles mysteriously. 

“How come everyone knows but me?” Jongin complains. 

“You know. Just you do not.” Yixing winks, and for a split second, Jongin can see why Baekhyun is so enamored with him. Good for Baekhyun, Jongin thinks savagely as he slowly, painfully rolls out, does a few jump rotations, and calls it a day. The gamer boy takes one step into the rink and snags an accomplished, handsome, and athletic boyfriend who’s head over heels for him. Jongin wishes he could say the same for himself. 

“Wait for me,” Taemin calls, and Jongin turns around from reaching out for the locker room door. Guess this is my love story, Jongin thinks as Taemin tugs his gloves on and they head towards the rink together. “Wake up a little,” Taemin nudges him playfully. “It’s a great day.” 

“It is not.” Jongin removes his skate guards and steps onto the ice. He is tired and sore and half-asleep; he is making it his mission to complain about everything this morning. But Taemin seems more amused than anything else at Jongin’s grumpiness, chuckling and bending deep into his knees while they glide towards Kibum along with the rest of the skaters, who are busy putting their things down. 

“Great, you’re all here.” Kibum nods in satisfaction. “I just have a few announcements before practice starts.” Jongin looks at him along with everyone else. “First things first, before we get carried away. Costumes. Where--” there’s a moment of awkward looking around before Minseok pops up from where he was lacing up his skates on the bench, unseen from the vantage point of standing on the ice. 

“Hi. Me?” 

“Yes.” Kibum nods. “Minseok will be collaborating on costume concepts with me, as usual. If any of you have ideas or pet peeves that you would like me to take into consideration, please tell me now.” 

“No feather.” Yixing pipes up. 

“Yep, I know. And Jinki, you like modest…” Minho snorts at this and Jinki nudges the back of Minho’s blade to throw him off balance just a little in retribution. “Nini? Any requests?” 

“Not really.” He’d been more than happy with Kibum’s costumes for him last year. 

“Taemin?” 

“I’ll just send you my ideas later.” 

“Sehun?” 

“I’m good.” Jongin steals a look at Sehun, whose eyes look a little puffy, as if he’d been crying. Apparently he’s not the only one who has noticed, because Minho has an arm draped around Sehun’s shoulders comfortingly. So that’s why Junmyeon is in the stands with Jonghyun this morning… 

“Okay, awesome. So then, my next point.” Kibum cracks a smile. “Nini.” 

“Yes, Coach-nim.” 

“Give me your jacket.” 

“Huh?” 

“Give it to me,” Kibum repeats, so Jongin slowly unzips his warm down jacket and hands it to Kibum, still very confused and now very cold in just his thin jacket and t-shirt without having warmed up yet. 

“Welcome…” Kibum rummages inside a box that Jongin hadn’t even noticed when he got on the ice, and hands him a package neatly wrapped in brown paper, stamped with the Federation’s emblem. “to Team South Korea.” 

KIM, JONG-IN. 

REPUBLIC OF SOUTH KOREA

2019-2020 JUNIOR WORLD TEAM

“Team jackets came in,” Jinki spells it out for him, smiling widely while Jongin brushes trembling fingers over the official label, suddenly very awake and feeling like today is, indeed, a great day. “We got ours this morning while you were sleeping. But you have a special ceremony, like everyone who first makes the team does.” 

“You earned this,” Kibum tells him. “You made it happen with your hard work. This jacket,” Kibum holds his old black one up. “This one knows all your falls, your blood, sweat, and tears. It got you this one.” Kibum taps the precious package in Jongin’s hands. “Wear it proudly, Nini.” 

“Are you going to say something?” Minho prompts while Jongin stares wordlessly at the package a little longer, reading the words over and over again. “Are you going to cry, Nini?” Jongin manages a small nod before the tears come and everyone else bursts into teasing laughter. 

“Someone give the boy a hug, geez…” Jinki shoves Taemin. 

“I can’t, I’m recording him so I can make fun of him later.” Jongin laugh-cries while Taemin giggles, devilishly shoving the camera into Jongin’s face to capture him in all his embarrassing early-morning, emotionally overwhelmed glory. Yixing wraps his arms around Jongin, who shudders and heaves in long, steadying breaths, clutching the package to his chest. 

“Why cry?” Yixing asks teasingly. “Why? You happy?” Jongin just cries harder and nods, overwhelmed with the feeling that all of his work has finally paid off.

“Jongin.” Suddenly Yixing is gone, replaced by Kibum’s arms. Jongin buries his face shamelessly into his coaches’ shoulder. Kibum is the one who knows all his worries and frustrations better than anyone else. He quietly accepts all of Jongin’s faults, and works tirelessly to turn him into a stronger, faster, more unique skater. It is Kibum who spends hours upon hours thinking of choreography and jump technique and inventing new spin combinations; who wakes up early and goes home late to dedicate his time to his talented, hardworking students; who is content to stand off to the side, clapping proudly with the audience while Jongin stands in the spotlight that Kibum gave him. “I’m so proud of you.” Kibum pats Jongin’s back a little too hard. “So proud.” 

“Thank you,” Jongin chokes out, wiping at his tears. At this rate, he won’t get any practice in. Minseok embraces him, too, gentle and comforting, smiling his bright gummy smile as usual, then Kyungsoo ruffles his hair. 

“No more falling. If you fall, you’ll ruin your jacket.” Jongin hiccups on a laugh. 

“No falling,” he agrees. 

“Shoo, shoo, go skate.” The skaters scatter away with Kibum’s scolding, although Jongin gets high-fives and hugs and teasing jeers before business resumes as usual. Only from now on, Jongin gets to wear South Korea’s flag over his breast. 

“Hyung.” Minho manages through gritted teeth as Jinki passes by the bench press with Taemin, who looks completely zoned out, unconsciously nodding his head along to whatever music is playing through his earbuds. Jinki halts and waits until Minho finishes his sets and Sehun has slowly helped guide the bar back onto the rack. 

“Yeah?” 

Minho sits up with minor difficulty and pants a little from exertion. Then. “What’s for dinner?” 

“Mood,” Sehun mutters as he moves to take one 10kg plate off of either side of the bar so he can do his set. Jinki makes a disbelieving noise in the back of his throat. 

“Is it that important?” 

“Absolutely.” Minho slowly stands up when Sehun tugs him off the bench and makes his way around to the back of the bar to spot Sehun. “Ready?” 

“Yeah.” Jinki waits for Sehun to do one rep until he speaks. 

“Chicken salad?” 

“Again?” Minho asks incredulously, lightly using one hand to help Sehun move through his entire range of movement in order to do the bench presses correctly. 

“Yes, again.” Jinki walks away, placing a hand on the small of Taemin’s back to lead him towards the lateral pull-down machine. 

“Nice.” Minho racks the bar for Sehun and thumps him on the back a couple times. Sehun only runs a hand through his hair, brushing it off of his forehead. 

“I’m--” Sehun makes to complain, then stops himself halfway. Minho pretends not to notice, but he’s caught onto Sehun’s unusual quietness today. The skater hasn’t complained once all through both practices and group off ice, instead moving through his practice and sets with robotic movements, as if his mind is off in a whole other world. Junmyeon’s presence at an early morning practice was also a telltale sign that something was off, and even though the three of them hadn’t had an explicit conversation, the pointed look that Junmyeon had sent Minho and Jinki when he left was enough to convey everything. It doesn’t take a rocket scientist to figure out what’s going through Sehun’s mind--especially when Minho’s been in his exact position before. 

Because of the nature of singles discipline figure skating as a solo sport, skaters learn to become self-reliant. Although they all train as a group, when it comes down to competition, the responsibility still lies on one person’s shoulders. And because of this, Minho knows, skaters become  _ stubborn.  _ They’re used to controlling their own self-discipline and training; they hate being seen as too weak to keep themselves in check. Every single one of them is obstinate about how they do things, from how many minutes a day they spend on skating skills, to which skate they tie first. So if Minho tries to outright comfort Sehun about his worries, he knows his effort would be completely wasted and dismissed. Sehun only wants comfort from Junmyeon. What he’s searching for internally, as he moves through another set of bench presses with locked lips, is a solution; something to soothe his worries.

“I was texting Changmin the other day,” Minho begins casually while the two of them walk out to the track to run 2 kilometers in order to cool down. Sehun nods out of the corner of Minho’s eye absentmindedly. “He was telling me how there are two skaters moving up to Junior this year at his rink.” Now he has Sehun’s attention. Minho begins jogging a little slower than he usually does. This run isn’t about the number of laps; it’s about Sehun. “Apparently they have four different quads already landed,” Minho talks with every other step he takes so as to not cramp up. Sehun lets out a quiet sigh of disappointment, so quiet that Minho barely hears it. Still, he continues. “But get this--” and here, Minho laughs a little breathlessly, “Changmin says they only land their quads 33% of the time in practice. He’s kinda getting annoyed at hearing these rookies brag about having the same amount of quads as him but with a third of his consistency.” 

“Huh.” 

“I feel bad for him,” Minho laments, because he really does, “having to listen to these kids who think Quads are the end all be all. You remember when I won Senior Nats? Like... 2 years after my ‘Fire Dance’ Novice program?” 

“Yeah.” 

“Yeah, I only had one Quad in that program. And it was a Quad Toe, not even a Loop or Flip or something. And I won Nationals with a 5-point margin. Seriously,” Minho shakes his head a little as they round the corner and set off for their final lap around the track. “I’m glad Kibum doesn’t teach you and Jongin all the Quads until your foundation is steady. What’s the point of having four Quads when you fall on 2 out of three attempts?” Minho huffs. “What's the rush? You can't do Quads in Junior anyways. I feel bad for those kids. They’re gonna have to learn their lesson the hard way.”

“Yeah,” Sehun agrees slowly, and Minho can almost physically see the dark rain cloud over Sehun’s head lifting a little. “Kibum says that we can’t put Quads in our program until we have an 80% consistency rate.” 

“Kibum’s a good coach,” Minho remarks. “You don’t need Quads to win anything. I mean, just look at Jason Brown; he made it to the Olympics with only one Quad. Or look at me. I didn’t have all my Quads until my second Senior year, and I still never placed below fourth at any international.” 

“Hyung,” Sehun laughs for the first time that day, “you’re my perfect role model.” 

“Absolutely not,” Minho vehemently denies this. “I’m just lamenting the lost cause of Quad-crazy rookies.” Both of them slow to a walk as they finish their laps, with Sehun looking far more reassured and relaxed than he had been before. 

“I’m impressed,” Jinki remarks when Minho finishes recounting the situation to him when they get home, “not necessarily because you managed to comfort him, but just that you told a whole story while you were running.” 

“We were running a bit slower.” Minho ruffles a hand through his shower-damp hair, perched on the kitchen counter while Jinki washes tomatoes. 

“Was it true?” Jinki wants to know. 

“The story? Yeah, of course.” Minho pulls out his phone and waves his chat with Changmin at Jinki. “We had a good gossip session.” 

“Choi Minho, what secrets about Ki-gang did you spill?” Jinki smiles wryly, placing each tomato on the cutting board next to him. 

“We don’t have anything to hide,” Minho laughs. “Oh, we made fun of you.” 

“Of course.” 

“He’s older than you and still competing,” Minho accuses. Jinki only smiles. 

“He’s doing well.” 

“So are you.” 

“Honestly--” Jinki flicks water drops at Minho and motions to the tomatoes. Minho slides down from the high counter and obediently moves to cut them up. “I’ll just take it as a compliment that nobody wants me to retire. Did you tell him, by the way?” Jinki demands. Minho looks affronted. 

“Do you think I would?” 

“No.” Jinki turns to the lettuce. 

“That’s your thing,” Minho waves his hand. “I just told him about my program music and we talked a little bit about Taeminnie.” 

“Taeminnie,” Jinki smiles a little bit. “He’ll be on fire this season.” 

“That’s my line.” 

“Oh, shush. You know he’ll beat your ass this year,” Jinki says just to get a rise out of Minho. 

“Are you sure about that?” Minho challenges. “Are you trying to start something?” 

“No, no, of course not. But I have full faith in my workout partner.” Jinki chuckles. “He’s going to be so good.” 

“When he runs his program, Nini stands at the boards and watches every time.” Minho lets the beef drop in lieu of teasing their Junior dongsaeng. 

“Aww, I see him do that, too.” Jinki drains the water from the bowl and moves to cut up two grilled chicken breasts, which have been resting on the cutting board. “It’s very cute.” 

“Hard as I try, I can’t see Taem dating anyone,” Minho remarks, laughing at just the idea. 

“Oh, definitely not. But Taemin’s happy these days,” Jinki confides to Minho. “He likes having a same-age friend. And apparently they talk a lot.” 

“S’good,” Minho murmurs. “It gets way too lonely if you don’t have someone.” 

“Mhm.” 

“OH!” Minho bursts into sudden laughter after a few minutes of comfortable silence. “Speaking of having someone, I told Changmin about Yixing with Baekhyun.” 

“Oh my God.” Jinki begins to smile at just the thought. “THOSE two.” 

“Have you ever seen someone more in love?” 

“He comes to Korea to train, and leaves with a gamer boy.” Jinki takes his amusement out on the chicken, driving the knife through it almost viciously. “It’s adorable.” 

“See, there are two types of skaters,” Minho analyzes carefully. “You have the Taemin or Hanyu type. No distractions whatsoever from their training. But then you have Sehunnie or Yixing. They balance life with skating.” 

“Either way works, though,” Jinki shrugs. “Javier Fernandez also falls into the latter. Nathan Chen, too.” 

“Are you sure?” Minho challenges this. “The best skaters have always come out of the Taemin type. The legendary ones.” 

“Nathan Chen isn’t legendary?” Jinki asks. 

“You know what I mean.” Minho waves his hand around and Jinki yelps. 

“PUT that knife down before you stab your foot.” 

“They emanate different vibes,” Minho explains. “Chen is a college student, he makes his other hobbies clear, he shares a lot about other aspects of his life. But Hanyu doesn’t do that… he’s mysterious and untouchable.” 

“Are you calling our little Taeminnie mysterious and untouchable?” Jinki begins to laugh. “Taeminnie, who eats chocolate cereal with pork belly and runs around the rink Naruto-style?” 

“Aiiishhhh, you’re just giving me a hard ass time,” Minho flicks tomato-flavored water droplets at Jinki. “You know exactly what I mean.” 

“Do I?” 

“AHH!” Minho slices the rest of the tomatoes with a vengeance. 

“So what’s up with Changmin?” Jinki asks after a minute, carefully tossing the ingredients for the salad into a bowl and adding a pinch of olive oil and salt for flavor. “How are things at his rink?”

“Same old stuff. Oh, wait. Well, this isn’t related to Changmin, but word has it that there’s a little Novice skater that’s making headlines.” 

“From Changmin’s rink?” 

“No. Apparently he’s from Thailand,” Minho reports, and Jinki’s eyebrows rise up in surprise. 

“And… and how does Changmin know about him?” 

“I think his coach was talking about it.” Minho carries the metal bowl full of healthy chicken salad to the table. “They say he has international potential.” 

“Does he represent Thailand?” Jinki wants to know. 

“Think so. But he’s currently training in China. Harbin, seems like.” 

“Figured. Thailand doesn’t have a big training base.” Jinki carefully places some of the salad onto two plates. “It’s always interesting to hear about up and coming skaters.” 

“We might see him around. Or not us. Maybe Yixing will when he goes for Nationals.” Minho shrugs. 

“What do you mean?” Jinki bursts into laughter. “You and Changmin are going to Cup of China this year.” 

“Ohhh, right.” Minho nods and forks a piece of perfectly grilled chicken into his mouth. “Yeah, well. We’ll see.” 

“We’ll see,” Jinki echoes. “There are lots of good upcoming and current rookies. Our team included.” 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Fun anecdote we didn't mean to publish today but we finished quicker than expected so here it is :3 Hope you guys like it!!!  
>  So it looks like we'll be updating 1-2 times per week? Thank you for waiting for every update! We're always writing and trying to give you guys the best updates so ♡ thank you for supporting us ♡  
>  Personal anecdote that beach camp is honestly one of the best things that has ever been invented  
>  It's honestly so fun  
>  And another personal anecdote that I share Minho's views about quad-crazy rookies bc where is the flavor? The gorgeous choreography? The expressions and artistry? Ugh ;-;  
>  Okie that's it! ILY! ♡♡♡♡
> 
> Some of you have already noticed that we like to hide canon Easter eggs in the chapters. Fun anecdotes of recent or old history. I feel like this chapter got quite a lot of those. How many did you spot? =D
> 
> Thank you for being such dedicated and wonderful readers <3\. We strive to put out quality chapters because of all the encouragement we receive from your comments.
> 
> See you next time~


	17. Chapter 17

**Notes for the Chapter:**

>  _Italic_ speech is Mandarin Chinese.

“Jinks, look.” 

“Jinks.” 

“Jinki.” 

“Jinkiiii.” 

“JINKS!” 

“What.” Jinki finally looks up from retying his skate in the penalty box benches. Minho turns towards the entrance of the rink, where Taemin is engrossed in conversation with Jongin. 

“Taemin-ah!” 

“Taeminnie!” 

“Taem!” 

“Taemin!” 

“One second, hyung!” 

“What…?” Jinki waves in between himself and Taemin. “What are you doing?” 

“I got something cool to show you.” 

“Are we showing them?” Taemin comes to a neat stop and places his water bottle, guards, and extra jackets on the rink barrier. 

“Showing what?” Jongin asks, just as confused as Jinki. 

“Our death spiral.” 

“Your WHAT?!” Jinki screeches. Minho extends an overly gallant hand to Taemin, who takes it fearlessly. The two of them gather speed--Taemin’s left clasped in Minho’s right hand, with the latter skating backwards--then Minho reaches behind with his left foot and picks into the ice with his toe pick in order to create a center in which he can pivot around with his gliding right foot. Meanwhile, Taemin--the absolute daredevil that he is--relies on the one connection between his and Minho’s hands, arches so far back that his body is almost parallel with the ice, crosses his left foot over his right, and glides in a large circle around Minho on his right leg, propelled by the elder’s pivoting and their own momentum from the speed they had gathered. Jongin shrieks in astonishment and awe, Yixing promptly starts recording as soon as he realizes what’s happening, and Jinki keeps a worried lookout for Kibum.

“YOOOOOO!” Sehun loses it the second he gets on the ice and sees the two of them pulling out of the death spiral. “When did you learn how to do that?!” 

“We screwed around yesterday after practice since there was no workout,” Taemin’s face is red with exertion, but he seems very satisfied with himself, especially when he catches sight of Jongin’s slack-jawed expression. 

“You could’ve gotten injured,” Jinki scolds. “It’s almost competition season, you shouldn’t be playing around with tricks like that.” 

“Says the guy who made Kibum teach him how to do a death spiral and used me as their guinea pig,” Minho rolls his eyes. 

“I can’t hold your weight anymore. We’ll both be concussed if we try.” 

“I wanna learn!” Jongin snaps out of his reverie. “I wanna learn, hyung.” 

“Do you want to die or do you want to spiral?” 

“Uhh…?” It takes a minute for Jongin to figure out which is which. “I don’t know.” 

“Pretty sure the only person you could spiral is Taeminnie, but I can die for you,” Minho offers. 

“Oh my God, you would die for me?” 

“Are we working???” Kibum’s curt voice cuts through the camaraderie. Jongin tries and fails to keep a straight face, instead hiding behind Minho to conceal his amusement. 

“Good morning, Coach,” Yixing is the first to speak and bow. 

“Morning. Shoo shoo. Off to work with you all.” Kibum waves towards them all to begin warming up. “Oh, wait.” All six skaters promptly stop in their tracks and glance over their shoulders. Minseok chuckles at the sight as he also glides gracefully onto the ice, holding a cup of iced coffee in one hand, and a mini speaker in the other. “Your costumes are going to be done this Friday, so we’ll have our little…” Kibum waves his hand airily, “Fitting and mock competition that day. Come with hair and makeup done like for competition. Or ask someone to do it. Whatever. That’s on you all.”

“Can Jun watch?” Sehun murmurs, shuffling his skates a little. 

“Sehun, what was that?” Sehun repeats his question a little louder. “Yeah, duh. When have I ever kicked a spectator out?” Kibum rolls his eyes affectionately. “Okay, now off you all go. Jongin, taking you in ten minutes. Jinki, with Minseok in 10. Kyungsoo will be late today, but he’ll take Minho at 7.” Jongin’s shoulders shake with silent laughter even as he works through his warm-up exercises, especially when Minho laps him and draws a finger across his own throat before offering a finger heart to Jongin. 

“In a good mood today?” Minseok inquires when Jongin finishes his warm-up, comes to a neat stop in front of all three coaches, and bows in a ninety-degree angle. 

“Um, it’s been an… amusing morning.” Jongin’s giggles finally quell themselves. 

“Let’s see if your program is amusing as well,” Kibum requests, and Jongin skates off to begin warming up sections of his long program. Under Kibum’s eye and occasional shouts to ‘keep your head up!’ or ‘shoulders back, look at the judges,’ Jongin warms up all his jumps, marks his spins, and especially focuses on his artistry. 

“Good. Even if you don’t hit all the jumps in the beginning, it’s fine, because those will come once you get used to the transitions and footwork,” Kibum comments when Jongin glides back to him. “Just focus on presentation.” 

“Got it.” 

“Let’s try a full run-through today?” Kibum asks. “All the jumps, all the spins, the whole shebang.” Jongin groans, but agrees anyways. He had been planning on only doing five out of eight jumping passes, and doing doubles for the rest, but it’s about time to start doing full run-throughs anyways--especially if they have their practice competition that Friday. Jongin skates over to the middle of the rink and takes his starting position. The faint strings of music sound through the rink, and Jongin moves as well. The most important part of his program is shape--or so Minseok says. There was a lot of awkward contortion involved in choreography, but now that Jongin’s been practicing it for a few weeks, things are starting to become more comfortable. Skating into the first jump, Jongin lets the music fade out into the background as he focuses solely on the timing of the jump instead of the tempo. Triple Lutz-Triple Toe combination. Shaky on the landing, but his right foot hits the ice on a nuance of the melody, so Jongin at least has musicality on his side.

“You’re not smiling!” Kibum’s voice calls. “Faster! Push!” Jongin falls on the second jumping pass, then lands the Triple Axel, and throws himself into his first spin. “PLEASE GET SOME SPEED,” Kibum complains when Jongin comes flying down the side of the rink to set up for his big 3-jump sequence in the second half of his program that makes up a huge majority of his risk factor. He’s still not sure if he’ll actually do it in an important competition or not, but still, it won’t hurt to try it at the local competition in two weeks. A set of footwork into it. Remembering Kyungsoo’s voice screaming the timing at him. 1, 2, 3--

“WOO! NICE!” That’s Minho’s appreciative shout, Kibum’s obnoxious clapping, and Minseok’s delighted whoop as Jongin lands it nicely, despite being out of breath and more than halfway done with the program. 

“Keep going, keep going, you can’t celebrate yet!” Kibum calls, but Jongin smiles much easier throughout the rest of the program. When the last spin ends and Jongin hits his final position, he collapses to his knees, heaving and gasping for air. 

“Oi, oi, get up! Move! One lap!” Kibum’s voice makes Jongin get on his feet again and raggedly skate one lap around the rink in order to catch his breath. “Good boy. Niiice Flip-Euler-Flip.” 

“Yeah.” Jongin dabs at the sweat on his forehead with his glove. Kibum glances at his forehead, then immediately grabs Jongin’s wrist. 

“You cut yourself.” 

“Huh?” Jongin looks down at his glove, and sure enough, there’s a slash in the black material from where his blade must have caught and sliced into when he was doing his catch-foot spin. “Oh, I--I didn’t notice.” 

“No shit.” Kibum hauls Jongin by the hand back to where his bag sits and rummages around for basic first-aid while Jongin gingerly peels his glove off. It wouldn’t be the first time he’s sliced himself, and it certainly won’t be the last. 

“Let me see. How bad is it?” Minseok inquires. 

“What’s happening?” A gruff voice joins in the group of concerned coaches.

“Just a cut,” Jongin reassures Kyungsoo, who has just arrived. Kyungsoo leans in next to Minseok to take a look. 

“It’s okay.” 

“Yeah, it’s fine.” Jongin agrees. 

“Here.” Kibum hands Jongin an alcohol swab and a band-aid. “You have blood on your forehead, too. Just so you know.” 

“Thanks.” Jongin gingerly takes the first aid and his skate guards and heads off the ice. “Hi, Jonghyun-hyung.” 

“Nini, hey. Your program is looking really good--what happened?” Jonghyun’s out of his seat in a flash. 

“Just a small cut--” Jongin’s immediately being directed to one of the benches. “I can do it--” 

“So can I.” Jonghyun sits the younger down and takes the first aid from his hands. There’s a quick swipe, the brief sting of alcohol, and a band-aid is wrapped around Jongin’s index finger. The coolness of the alcohol also touches Jongin’s forehead as Jonghyun wipes away the spot quickly. “Off you go.” 

“Thanks, hyung,” Jongin laughs, and earns a sweaty pat on the head in return. He quickly gets back to the locker room to grab a spare pair of gloves before returning to the ice just in time to spectate Taemin running his ‘Slave’ program. 

宝贝 (Baobei) 

Do you have time July 27? 

Yixing shoots the text off, then sets his phone down so he can untie his skates. He’d like to get home as soon as possible so he can shower and take a power nap before returning for the afternoon practice. A small movement to his right makes him glance up to see Jongin’s hand being cupped by Taemin’s, and the younger trying very, very hard to suppress a blush. 

“I cut my finger during my program run-through,” Jongin explains at large to whoever might be listening. “Stupid camel catch-foot spin.” 

“Just be careful,” Taemin murmurs, with Jongin’s hand still sandwiched in between his own small ones. 

“Yeah, I’m--I’m good, Taem,” Jongin mutters, and Yixing turns away from the two, biting back a smile. His phone vibrates with a text. 

宝贝 (Baobei) 

宝贝 (Baobei) 

Depends when… :/ 

I have competition 

Like 4pm 

宝贝 (Baobei) 

Ahhh damn 

Definitely can’t make it sigh 

I have Rift Rivals 

I’m so sorry hon 

I would rly love to come watch TT 

Yixing sighs, but he isn’t really surprised. With Baekhyun being a professional gamer and his own increasingly intensive training, the two of them barely have time to meet each other, instead texting during lunch breaks or rare quiet periods in their schedules. The last time they had really seen each other was when Yixing watched Baekhyun’s stream. Their demanding and conflicting schedules are tough to keep up with, but if there’s one thing Yixing’s happy about, it’s that Baekhyun understands--even empathizes--with the fact that they can’t see each other perhaps as often as both of them would like to. At least there will never be a brewing argument there. 

宝贝 (Baobei) 

It's okay 

I am also sorry 

Can’t watch you compete 

宝贝 (Baobei) 

We’re both bad boyfriends :3 

Yes ;) 

“Xingie,” Jinki calls, and Yixing looks up. “Is your boyfriend coming to Cherry Blossom Open? 

“Ah, just text him. He also has… has competition,” Yixing shakes his head regretfully. 

“Damn. That’s tough.” 

“It okay,” Yixing shrugs. “We both busy.” 

宝贝 (Baobei) 

宝贝 (Baobei) 

Xing xing 

I miss you 

Shit, that’s so cute. Yixing has no idea who he learned it from, but one day, Baekhyun had started calling him ‘xing xing’. In Mandarin, Yixing had explained with some difficulty, xing xing translated to ‘star’. Baekhyun had only sent a wink face and a cheeky, ‘ur my xing xing.’ Yixing had run his first clean program of the year that afternoon. 

宝贝 (Baobei) 

Miss you too, baobei 

“Invite him to the showcase on Friday,” Minho shouts over to Yixing while engaged in a very heated conversation with Jonghyun. 

“Oh!” Yixing hadn’t even thought of that. 

“Yes! Invite him!” Sehun urges. “Please do.” 

宝贝 (Baobei) 

Are you free Friday? 

宝贝 (Baobei) 

??? 

I said I had Rift Rivals… 

Sorry I mean this Friday 

宝贝 (Baobei) 

Oh 

OH 

Uhhhhhhhh! 

Mayyybeeee… 

When :3 

Morning

Early… 

Like 7… 

宝贝 (Baobei) 

OhI can only do like 10 ish :( 

And it would have to be rly quick 

Maybe just coffee and go 

Yixing considers this for a moment. So Baekhyun wouldn’t be able to come to the showcase… but maybe they can still make it work? 

宝贝 (Baobei) 

Can come to rink? 

Because Coach has costume and I want to show you short program 

With costume 

Like competition but only you 

宝贝 (Baobei) 

!!! 

Yes yes 

Okay :D 

I can do that 

It will be quick 

I need leave after too 

宝贝 (Baobei) 

Yeah sure 

Same 

Okay friday it is 

I have to go now but i’ll see youuuu ♡ 

加油 

Fighting~♡♡♡ 

“No to the showcase?” Sehun guesses when Yixing’s lips twist up. 

“No. We spend some time together like… uhm, after.” 

“Damn, that’s so tough,” Sehun laments. “You guys barely see each other.” 

“Both busy,” Yixing agrees, finally finishing taking off his skate. “I--” 

“We’re gonna--oh sorry, Xing-hyung--Taemin and I are gonna get lunch together,” Jongin announces. “Anybody wanna come?” 

“Chicken,” Jinki answers as Minho opens his mouth to ask. 

“K, I’m coming with you guys.” Minho makes up his mind on the spot. 

“Oh, I’ll tag along, too, then,” Jonghyun smiles. 

“Yixing-hyung?” Taemin turns towards him. 

“No, thank you.” 

“Sehunnie?” 

“Sehun, come back to my place,” Jinki offers. “You can take a nap and everything, no worries.” 

“Are you trying to coerce Sehun into sharing your chicken obsession?” Minho asks. 

“I like chicken,” Sehun shrugs. “Sure. Jun’s busy today.” 

“Awesome. See y’all later.” The locker room empties out considerably as the three skaters and Jonghyun take their leave. 

Come Friday, all the skaters excitedly crowd around the 12 outfits that Kibum brings into the rink, hung neatly on clothes hangers, covered with a plastic laundry bag. Jongin takes a peek inside at his free skate ‘Lilies of the Valley’ costume first, and promptly falls in love. The material is stretchy white polyester, made to look like a collared button up but with a small zipper in the front, as buttons and Triple jumps don’t really go well together, and there are artfully designed splotches of black ink that were painted to look like lily petals dotting the sides of the shirt. Small rhinestones are placed about 2 inches apart from each other over the entire shirt in order to give it some weight and sparkle on the ice. 

“It’s so pretty,” Jongin coos. “The design is so minimalistic.” 

“That’s what I wanted for you,” Kibum tells him, handing his short program shirt over as well. “Both of them look similar in design.” True to his word, the short program shirt’s cut is exactly that of the freeskate, but with wide vertical stripes that display abstract black and white prints. 

“I like it. I love it. These are going to be so pretty. Thank you,” Jongin throws his arms around Kibum excitedly. 

“Try them on today, yeah? Glad you like them.” Kibum chuckles and pats his back. 

“Good for you,” Sehun deadpans, scrutinizing his free skate outfit. “Coach, no offense, but--” 

“I’m taking full offense, Sehun.” Kibum runs a hand impatiently against the wide mesh sleeves and the stretchy velvet bodice. The entire design doesn’t look that bad, but the fact that it’s a bright royal blue and gold rhinestone design along the v-neck are a little tacky… Jongin clutches his own pretty, minimalist costumes to his chest and swallows the urge to tease Sehun. 

“It’s fine, Sehun.” Jinki comes over after examining his own designs, satisfied with his requested high-waisted pants and conservative but elegant shirts. “You’re tall, it’ll look good on you.” 

“Don’t forget that your program execution is so much more important than your costume,” Minho adds, already having changed into his very sexy dark red Assassin’s Tango short program costume. 

“That’s a really low neckline,” Jinki comments. “I like the fire cut-out along the neck though.” 

“As if you would wear anything more revealing than a scoop neck,” Minho teases. “One of these days, you’ll have Kibum make a turtleneck costume for you.” Jinki holds up one of his costumes silently, and Minho bursts into laughter. “You  _ actually  _ have a turtleneck?!” 

“The material for the sleeves is a little sheer,” Kibum points out the big, flowy sleeves that cinch at the wrist. 

“Hyung! This is so pretty,” Jongin coos, eyeing the white to blue ombre and lines of rhinestones. “It’s for ‘Nessun Dorma’, right?” 

“Yes.” Jinki ruffles Jongin’s hair. “See, at least someone likes my fashion sense.” 

“Your programs aren’t made to have a sex appeal anyways,” Jongin says rather matter of factly, backing Jinki wholeheartedly. 

“Was that shade, Nini?” Minho teases, and Jongin pouts at him, shaking his head playfully. “Jinks, if you want, we can switch costumes,” Minho suggests, tugging at the collar of his costume. Jinki only glares at his roommate and teammate. 

“Alright guys, let’s change and try these out on the ice, okay?” Kibum calls just as Yixing reappears in a very majestic-looking shirt. “Woahhh, Xing. Very nice. I’m glad the high collar worked out. It’s not too tight, is it?” 

“I like,” Yixing murmurs, coming closer so Kibum can fuss over the way the material clings to his body. 

“It kind of reminds me of your witch program from last year,” Jongin comments. “Is this for your short program?” 

“Yes. ‘La Terre Vue du Ciel’--free skate--much more… like, what is it? Less,” Yixing waves his hands around helplessly for the word. 

“Less flamboyant?” 

“Maybe?” Yixing furrows his brows together. “My Korean still bad.” 

“No, it’s gotten a lot better,” Kibum says absently, examining the purple fabric design that runs down a tight sleeve of Yixing’s costume. Jongin nods fervently in agreement. 

“I’m gonna go try these on,” Jongin starts shuffling towards the bathrooms. “And then put my skates on.” 

“Okay.” Yixing stands in his t-pose, still trapped by Kibum’s fussing, and wiggles his fingers at Jongin, who starts to walk away, but is stopped in his tracks when Taemin rounds the corner, dressed in… Jongin’s jaw drops to the ground and he claps both hands over his mouth. Taemin catches sight of him and waves, happy as can be, but Jongin can’t even blink. All he can do is stare unabashedly at the young skater and his… can it really even be called a shirt? Jongin swallows as he takes in the white leather straps that criss-cross artfully over Taemin’s bare chest, covering everything that needs to be covered, as well as keeps the harness structured enough so as to not move too much. There is a thin, tight, white mesh long-sleeve underlay below the harness, studded with a few rhinestones here and there to give it some weight, but Jongin can very clearly see the way Taemin’s waist disappears into his pants, the definition of his thin, but toned arms, and his collarbones… Jongin almost sinks down to his knees right then and there. 

“Nini, good morning!” Taemin makes his way over to Jongin, who could  _ swear  _ there’s a sway in Taemin’s hips, as if he’s feeling himself a little extra today because of his sultry costume and dark, heavy eye makeup. 

“Hhhhhhh--” 

“Are these your costumes?” Shit, he’s right in front of Jongin, whose eyes are still glued to a tiny little strip of skin peeking out between two thin leather straps that’s practically begging to be kissed. Jongin swallows hard and squeaks out something like a ‘yes.’ 

“I-is--short--that one--” Jongin’s pants feel a little tight, and he drops his arms full of white fabric a little lower to cover anything that might happen to be showing. 

“Yeah, this is for ‘Slave’.” Taemin fiddles with his sleeve, and holy shit, he has white leather ‘shackles’, too. This is too much for Jongin. He gulps in air, feeling a little lightheaded. 

“You… look…” Jongin can barely bring himself to look at Taemin. And to think things were going so well, too; with the two of them bantering and laughing so easily… Now Jongin’s right back at square one--flustered, blushing, crushing so hard that his chest aches. He  _ really  _ wants to feel how all that leather and skin feels pressed up against his own bare chest. “You look good,” Jongin whispers, staring at the reflection of the light on a shiny metal buckle and wanting nothing more than to touch. With a massive effort, he tears his eyes away from Taemin and glances around the rink to notice that his reaction seems to be mirrored in some of his teammates’ facial expressions--namely Sehun, who is openly staring at Taemin, and Yixing, who’s still trapped by Kibum, but is apparently amusing himself by letting his eyes rake over every inch of Taemin’s figure. Jongin gets the strange urge to cover Taemin in a jacket and refuse to let anyone else see him. 

“Whew.” Kibum finally lets Yixing go and walks over to Taemin. “This turned out better than I thought it would.” 

“I like it,” Taemin chirps happily. Jongin gets gently pushed away by Kibum so the coach can examine the costume. 

“We’ll have to see how it does when you start skating, but it looks good so far. Anything too tight? Too loose? Does it feel secure? We don’t want you getting deductions for flashing anyone.”  _ Oh,  _ how Jongin would love that. 

“Everything’s good right now. I think the shackles are a nice touch.” 

“Mmkay.” Kibum glances up to see Jongin still rooted to the spot. “What are you doing? Go change. You have to be on the ice in twenty minutes.” 

“Huh--okay.” Jongin reluctantly walks away from Taemin and his devastatingly sensual costume. Thank God he’s not in Senior yet, because he would probably pop a hard-on every time he competes against Taemin. 

“Surprise!” The locker room door bursts open and Jongin looks up in shock as his two roommates traipse proudly into the already cramped room. Junmyeon is immediately making himself scarce by squeezing into a corner and tracing the outline of black crystals along Sehun’s short program costume. At least that one had been much better than the free skate, with a deep v-cut neckline, showcasing a solid black front and sleeves with a black mesh back. Sehun’s figure looks slim and gorgeous; Junmyeon hasn’t taken his eyes off of his boyfriend since he’d first caught sight of him. 

“Don’t you have class…?” Jongin wonders bewilderedly, but still stands up haphazardly with only one skate tied to embrace a bouncy, cuddly Jongdae. 

“We both didn’t want to go.” 

“So you… skipped… class… just because you didn’t feel like going,” Jongin asks flatly. Jongdae pouts. 

“Nini, I support you so much. I’m always at all your competitions, and I brag to all my friends that I’m roomies with a Team South Korea athlete. But you’re going to throw all my love away just like that…?” 

“I--what?” Jongin asks confusedly while Jongdae pretends to sniffle tears in the folds of his brand new costume. 

“Guilt tripper,” Chanyeol accuses, tugging Jongdae back so Jongin can tie his skates. “He skipped class because he’s jealous my professor cancelled.” 

“That definitely seems like the right story,” Jongin concedes, sitting back down to finish tying his other skate. Not 30 seconds later, Jongdae has caught sight of Taemin in his skimpy outfit and pushes Jongin into an unsuspecting Yixing in order to sit on the narrow bench next to Taemin.

“I like your costume,” Jongdae purrs, flashing a kitten smile at the skater, who glances up in surprise to come face to face with Jongdae instead of Jongin. 

“Thank you,” Taemin’s lips twitch in amusement. “It’s good to see you, Jongdae-ssi.” 

“Good to see you, too,” Jongdae coos. “Especially when you look this hot.” Taemin peeks around the economics student at Jongin, who’s glaring daggers at Jongdae’s back. 

“Kim Jongdae,” Jongin mutters. His roommate pays him no attention.

“I’m really looking forward to your program,” Jongdae continues. “I’ve heard a lot about it. It seems like you’re quite the seducer.” 

“Oh?” Another glance at Jongin, who points to Jongdae and draws a line across his own throat.  _ Death to the roomie.  _ Taemin’s shoulders are shaking with silent laughter. “I’m really happy to hear I’ve been portraying the concept well.” 

“You don’t need to skate the program to portray it,” Jongdae tells him, leaning closer. “You’re sexy just like this.” 

“I--” Taemin can’t help it, he bursts into laughter. “It’s too early in the morning for this, Jongdae-ssi.” 

“Oh, no worries. I’ll come back tonight then. Anytime works for me--” 

“Oookay, we’re going to be late getting on the ice, and I, for one, do not want to deal with Cerberus today,” Jongin announces loudly. “Taemin-ah, let’s go.” 

“I’m good,” Taemin shrugs his team jacket on, covering up his gorgeous body line and revealing costume, much to Jongin and Jongdae’s disappointment. 

“Find me in the stands, sweetheart,” Jongdae calls. Taemin clutches Jongin’s shoulder for support as he succumbs to amusement. Jongin, in a bout of bravery, wraps a possessive hand around Taemin’s waist to support him, and flicks Jongdae off with his other hand. Jongdae simply winks at his roommate and throws him a thumbs up. 

“I’m SO sorry,” Jongin apologizes. “Jongdae’s a little shit, he flirts with everyone and everything. One time we went out and got drunk, and he started flirting with a chair. I’m serious. He gave it a lapdance and everything.” 

“Stop,” Taemin’s laughing so hard he’s nearly in tears. “I’m gonna cry, oh my God…” Jongin giggles, mostly because he’s giddy at everything. The costumes, the excitement radiating off of everyone this morning, making Taemin laugh. He links his arm with Taemin’s in a fit of euphoria, and Taemin lets him, keeping him close while both of them laugh about Jongdae’s bold advances, and then nothing at all. Everything points to an easy, lighthearted practice, especially when Minho gets on the ice by doing a perfect impression of a catwalk strut over to the boards and drops down in front of the two giggling skaters, spreading his legs and running his hands along his thighs. There’s a wolf-whistle from Yixing and an embarrassed laugh from Jinki. 

“Sehunnie, dear, show us what you got.” Sehun faces towards the bleachers and teasingly pulls at the corner of his deep neckline, then turns tail and makes sure to put an extra sway into his hips while he struts towards the skaters. Junmyeon buries his head in his hands, and Jongdae’s signature laugh can be heard all the way on the ice. 

“Mr. Oh, make sure you channel that energy during your run through today,” Minseok teases, gliding onto the ice next to Kyungsoo, who looks as unamused as ever. Sehun doesn’t look the least bit unabashed at having been caught. 

“Just like competition,” Kibum announces. “10 minute warm up while Minseok and I randomly decide your skate order.” He whips out his phone and shows the skaters the timer. “Your time starts now.” 

10 minutes is really only enough to get in one or two laps of skating skills around the rink, then Jongin pulls into his back scratch spin in the middle of the ice because the position of the spin mirrors that of his rotation position. Out of the corner of his eye, he can see all the other skaters doing the same thing, except for Taemin and Minho, who choose to warm up rotations with a nice and easy Double Axel. Each to his own; Jongin has pretty much always followed the same sequence for all of his jumps and warm-ups in his 10 years of competing. Whereas it seems Taemin and Minho like to start with jumping first, Jongin warms up one out of three spins in his program before going through all his Triples, then does his combination jumps from the steps of his choreography. If he has time left over, he’ll do another combination spin, or maybe a run-through of his footwork, just to get his skates under him, so to speak. By then, it’s about time to return to Kibum. 

“Juniors skate first,” Kibum murmurs. “Sehun, then Jongin. Then my Seniors--Minho, Yixing, Taemin, Jinki. And as always, whoever isn’t skating is judging. Kyungsoo is your technical specialist.” The five skaters hop onto the side of the barrier in a crude representation of the judges’ view. Each of them has--by Kibum’s request--downloaded an app that actually allows them to input GOE’s for the elements performed and ‘calculate’ a skater’s score. 

Sehun’s short program is to ‘Back to Black’ by The Bryan Ferry Orchestra, taken from the soundtrack of ‘Great Gatsby’. Like everything that Sehun does, he manages to put a sexy, modern spin on the 1920s concept. The choreography flows with the waltz melody of the song, but Sehun makes it sensual and tantalizing with details as simple as a neatly extended freeleg, or the raise of an eyebrow when he performs a rocker-turn in front of his ‘judges’. 

“Kid sets way too high expectations with himself,” Jongin hears Minho mutter to Jinki next to him when Sehun lands a flawless Triple Salchow-Triple Toe combination, with a difficult exit out of the landing that goes into a spread eagle while Sehun runs both hands down his chest. Jongin looks up from tapping the +3 icon in his phone to sneak a glance at Junmyeon, who’s intently watching every move while Jonghyun commentates for Jongdae, Chanyeol, and Junmyeon in the stands. Sehun steps out of the landing of his Triple Axel--wrapped rotation position, Jongin gives him -2--lands the Triple Loop nice and easy, and doesn’t hold some of his positions for his spins as long as he needs to. But overall, it’s a great start, and Kibum nods in satisfaction. 

“Not about execution today,” Kibum reminds everyone. “You don’t need to do all the jumps if you don’t want to. I just want to see you all separately with the costumes and everything. Jongin, let’s go.” Jongin passes his phone to Sehun and hops off the boards onto the ice, shaking his legs out. 

Sam Smith was a very strategic choice for Jongin’s short program this year, because it exudes a very mature concept that Jongin hasn’t actually played with all that much yet. Jongin’s starting position is, as Minseok puts it, ‘a nice big bear hug for yourself’. When the first strings of music start, there’s a slow head roll, and Jongin brings his arms over his head as he turns backwards and bends deep in his knees to subtly gather speed. Minseok had explained that mature concepts require a whole new level of intricate choreography--things that a general audience might not consciously catch, but will add a new level of depth to Jongin’s skating. He’s still getting used to it, especially because his skating skills have never been exceedingly strong like Yixing’s or Taemin’s. So although he skates his short program completely clean, there’s a sort of awkwardness to his skating in which the movements don’t quite flow together perfectly just yet. 

“We’ll work on that,” Minseok promises when Jongin skates back to the wall. “I have some good exercises for you.” 

Everyone else’s short programs pass by rather quickly. Jongin almost forgets to evaluate Taemin’s short program when he does it, because he’s far too busy watching the way Taemin’s torso undulates with every sinful body roll. 

“Do your job,” Jinki nudges him playfully. Jongin gives Taemin nothing less than a +2 for every element in his program. So what if he’s a little biased; the man has Kyungsoo and Kibum harping on him all the time. Jongin can afford to be more lenient. There’s a quick ten minute break for everyone to change into their free skate costume, another ten minute warm-up, and then they’re all lined up again. Truth be told, the free skate is much more disastrous than the short program. It’s clear that while everyone is technically ready to compete, the programs are all still relatively messy and new. Jongin pops two jumps and falls on his big combination. Sehun falls twice and his footwork is so sloppy that Minseok frowns. The Seniors, with more experience under their belts, are a little better--competitive Minho actually does a clean program and earns a very approving nod from Kyungsoo--but Yixing’s landings are base value 0 at best, and Taemin frustratedly pops his Quad Flip. 

“It’s the beginning of the season,” Jongin consoles him when he skates back to the boards and sits down next to Jongin. His bare arms brush up against Jongin, because his free skate costume is a sleeveless, dark purple suit vest with two thin black belts that circle his thin waist. Jongin’s absolutely positive that his favorite one is the ‘Slave’ harness, but this one cuts close, too, because Taemin looks so regal and handsome in it. 

“I keep popping Flip,” Taemin whines. “Ah, what do I do?” 

“Taemin-ah, it’s only us,” Jongin murmurs, watching Jinki’s solemn free skate to ‘To Build A Home’ that makes his heart ache. Jinki’s artistry has always been so beautiful. “You have plenty of time to improve. And your transitions and choreography already look so natural.” 

“I suppose.” There’s a quiet little sigh, then Jongin gasps as Taemin lays his head on Jongin’s shoulder. Jongin immediately leans towards Taemin to offer more space as his heartbeat quickens in nervous happiness. “There’s still lots of work to be done,” Taemin says quietly, barely loud enough to be heard over the piano music. 

“Yeah, I need to practice more, too.” Jongin sighs. “Taemin-ah?” 

“Hm.” 

“Don’t be s… so hard on yourself. Just… you work… really hard,” Jongin’s face flushes red and he stutters as he tries to convey what he means. “I mean, it’s good that you have high expectations, and I’m not trying to tell you what to do or anything like that, I just meant--” 

“Jongin, pay attention,” Kyungsoo snaps. “Quad Loop, clean.” 

“Sorry,” Jongin squeaks, and looks over to Jinki again. Taemin’s head shifts as he nods at Jongin’s words. 

“I know what you meant. Thank you, Nini.” Taemin speaks after Jinki finishes skating, shaking his head at his two pops and scratchy spins. 

“Just wanna remind everyone that today wasn’t a competition,” Kibum tells his skaters. “I just wanted to see you all in your costumes. I’m not expecting clean programs, or perfect execution, or spot on interpretation. That will all come with practice, okay? We got our job done this morning, and that’s what counts. I’ll see you all in the afternoon.”

“You changed back into your short program costume,” Jinki remarks when Yixing makes his way back into the locker room. 

“Want to show Baek,” Yixing explains, dabbing at the sweat on his neck with a napkin and opening his phone’s front camera to check his makeup. 

“Cute,” Jongin muses, wiping down his blades. “Tell him I said hi.” 

“Okay.” Yixing sits down and bends over to loosen his skates until Baekhyun arrives. There’s about an hour of ice left. Sometimes Taemin or Sehun or whoever else wants extra time will stay on a little longer, but today’s practice mostly just constituted of the competition. The real training session will happen this afternoon. 

“Have fun, Xingie!” Minho waves as he and Jinki leave. Yixing waves back and calls out farewells as the locker room slowly clears out, then he slips into his Team China jacket and heads back out on the ice to screw around. About ten minutes later, Yixing can almost feel the eyes on him, and he pulls out of his flying sit spin to see a gorgeous boy, cute even in his team t-shirt and sweatpants, eagerly watching him from the open door of the rink. 

“Zhang Yixing, you talented man, you’re showing off,” Baekhyun yells while Yixing skates towards him and all but picks him up and spins him around. “I missed you,” Baekhyun laughs, face buried tight against Yixing’s shoulder, breathing in the scent of fresh ice and makeup, legs hooked around Yixing’s waist tightly. 

“Baobei,” Yixing’s range of movement is a little compromised with a full-grown man in his arms, but he still swizzles over to the barrier that lines the penalty boxes and deposits Baekhyun to sit atop the boards. 

“Am I allowed to sit here?” 

“Yes, definitely.” Yixing slots himself in between Baekhyun’s spread, dangling legs and wraps his arms around Baekhyun’s thin waist. “Are you eat enough?” Yixing inquires worriedly. “Sleep well?” 

“I’ve been okay.” Baekhyun smiles down at Yixing. “I like being taller than you, heh.” 

“Want to show you something,” Yixing murmurs. 

“Go for it. Give me a show.” Baekhyun winks. Yixing unzips his team jacket and watches with concealed amusement as Baekhyun’s eyes rake down his figure. After all, the spandex and mesh don’t really leave any room for imagination. Baekhyun swallows hard. 

“You’re hot, Xing-Xing.” 

“Are you cold?” Yixing questions. Baekhyun bursts into laughter at the pun. 

“A little,” he admits, rubbing his bare forearms. Yixing’s team jacket is draped over his shoulders immediately. “What if someone sees?” Baekhyun asks worriedly, touching the flag on Yixing’s jacket. 

“Nobody important here,” Yixing tells him soothingly. “Just sit and watch.” 

“Oh, I’m watching alright.” Baekhyun’s eyes truly don’t leave Yixing for a second, not even when the elder quickly plugs his phone into the auxiliary cord and sets the music on a ten second delay so he can get to his starting position. Then it starts, and Yixing sinks into his headspace where every ounce of him is giving his all to the performance, because it’s so rare that Baekhyun and he get time together. He really wants to skate the program perfectly for his boyfriend, even if it might be the beginning of the season. 

Baekhyun clutches Yixing’s jacket around himself tightly and eyes the way the rhinestones on Yixing’s arms and chest shimmer as he hits each pose with practiced balance and precision. All of his movements are seemingly smooth and relaxed, but also filled with controlled power. Even to Baekhyun’s untrained eye, he can tell that he’s watching the product of years and years of practice and discipline. Yixing is riveting; all he needs to do is stand there and emanate his confident aura to command attention. Baekhyun doesn’t even properly hear the music because he’s so taken by the sight of his boyfriend, tilting his head cheekily, moving from one position to the next like it’s nothing. His eyes are smirking at Baekhyun. Baekhyun smiles back before Yixing spins around and  _ really  _ gets the show going. 

“Holy shit,” Baekhyun murmurs, watching how effortlessly Yixing picks up speed with just a few movements. Everything looks a hundred times faster and more intricate when he has a front row seat. His boyfriend goes flying into a jump combination that Baekhyun has no name for, but is absolutely captivated by. He totally forgets to clap when Yixing lands it perfectly. As Yixing performs transitional choreography into his next element, Baekhyun slowly starts registering all the parts of the performance, and can’t help but feel like the music sounds… familiar. 

“What song is this?” he asks aloud before realizing nobody is going to answer him. The origin is right there, teetering on the edge of his memory just out of reach. Too much of his brain power is currently dedicated to admiring every inch of Yixing’s graceful figure. He watches attentively as Yixing does a jump-thing into his spinny element, still trying to place where exactly he’s heard the crazy electric guitar riff that fades out into theatrical percussion and excitement-inducing buildup. It isn’t until Yixing has landed a flawless Triple Axel--Baekhyun knows that one because it takes off forwards--that it hits him and he nearly falls off the barriers in shock. 

The login screen music, Odyssey. Yixing’s skating to a League of Legends soundtrack. How could Baekhyun have missed that?

“Holy shit!” Baekhyun yelps, then claps a hand over his mouth, hoping he didn’t mess up Yixing’s performance. Luckily, it doesn’t seem like the elder was affected at all, because he winks at Baekhyun as he flies by, skating so close to him that if Baekhyun had reached out, he would’ve been able to stop Yixing in his tracks. His little smirk and wind-rumpled hair make Baekhyun’s heart  _ melt.  _ Yixing seems to become more and more handsome the more time they spend apart from each other. His final jumping pass is huge and right in front of Baekhyun, who finally has regained enough of his sense to clap loudly and cheer as Yixing flies into a series of complicated-looking steps. Baekhyun gets swept up in the performance, staring captivated at Yixing’s easylike carriage across the ice, his facial expressions, how he makes everything look all floaty and elegant even when the music is so intense. There are two more spinny things that make Baekhyun dizzy to even look at, and then Yixing hits his final pose--feet planted underneath him, right fist raised to the ceiling in triumph. 

“WOOOOOO!” Baekhyun goes crazy for his man, cheering and clapping, thumping his feet against the hollow barriers to make even more noise in the empty rink. “YI-XING! YI-XING! YI-XING! YI-XING!” His boyfriend bows towards him, forehead glimmering with sweat, and breathing heavily. “COME HERE!” Baekhyun demands, holding his arms out, and who is Yixing to deny him anything? He comes flying into Baekhyun’s grasp and pants into Baekhyun’s chest, still trying to catch his breath. 

“You’re skating to Odyssey?” Baekhyun asks, clutching onto Yixing tightly. He couldn’t care less about all the sweat. 

“Yes… I pick… music… on my own…” Yixing gasps, reaching out to grab his tissue box and dab all the sweat off his face. “That was… good run-through.” 

“Good?! It was AMAZING! Oh my gosh, babe, you skate so fast, it’s insane. And your jumps are like,  _ this  _ big, and your spins--don’t you get dizzy? And you’re so hot, the routine was amazing, I love it, I loved it soooo much.” Baekhyun feels the arms around his waist squeeze even tighter. “I didn’t expect you to be skating to a League soundtrack!” Baekhyun bursts into delighted laughter. “It took me almost thirty seconds to recognize it. Babe…”

“I am glad you like it,” Yixing looks up at Baekhyun with nothing but happiness and affection in his eyes. “I actually… in beginning, when I choose, I want to skate to your like. You favorite song?” 

“Legends Never Die?” Baekhyun inquires, feeling his heart skip a beat. Yixing had remembered, even if he had just said it briefly in an after-game interview. Of course he had remembered.

“Yes. But it--singer is girl,” Yixing explains. “In skating we skate to same gender singer. Otherwise too weird.” 

“I see,” Baekhyun nods. “But it’s fine, babe. I’m just… wow. I can’t believe you’re skating to a League of Legends soundtrack. I’m--I don’t even know what to say.” Baekhyun finds himself in a rare moment of speechlessness. 

“Did you notice costume?” Yixing shuffles back a little so Baekhyun can take in the design. Baekhyun blinks a few times because now that Yixing mentions it, the styling does look familiar as well… 

“Invictus Gaming Leblanc. The skin,” Baekhyun identifies it confidently. It’s one of his most played champions after all. Yixing beams. 

“I show to Coach and he design off it, yes.” 

Baekhyun kind of feels like there’s a little lump in his throat or something. How many puppies had he saved in his past life to deserve Yixing? The man seriously has it all covered. “Xing-Xing, you’re amazing.” He settles on that. 

“You are, too.” Yixing reaches out for Baekhyun’s hand and presses it to his lips. Baekhyun reaches out and smooths Yixing’s tousled hair, then glances at the big digital clock hung at the far end of the ice rink. 

“I… I have to go really soon. Like five minutes,” Baekhyun murmurs regretfully. He doesn’t want to leave, not when spending time with Yixing is so fun, so natural, so endearing and sweet. These are the moments in which he wishes he wasn’t always so busy, so successful, and always so focused on his career. Some days, Byun Baekhyun just wants to kick back and relax and go on a million dates with his sweet, talented boyfriend. 

“It is okay,” Yixing reassures him, even with Baekhyun voicing his apology. “I understand. I am sorry, too. Busy, so cannot visit you. Always tired.” 

“You work really hard, I can tell,” Baekhyun murmurs. He can feel himself being lifted and carried again, and wraps his arms around Yixing’s neck to hold on tightly. “Wait--where are we going?” Yixing’s carrying him further out onto the ice instead of back towards the door. “Babe?” 

“你没吻我就不能走,” Yixing tells him firmly in Mandarin.  _ You can’t leave until I get a kiss.  _

“Huh?” Baekhyun clings tightly to Yixing as the elder sets him down on the slippery ice. They’re standing right in the middle of the ice rink together, surrounded by nothing except bright stadium lights and cold, empty metal bleachers. But as Yixing pulls his jacket more securely over Baekhyun’s shoulders and places a hand on the small of his back, Baekhyun has never felt more safe and cozy. Having not seen his boyfriend in almost three weeks, Baekhyun is shockingly aware of every point of contact against Yixing’s lithe body. He almost whimpers just from Yixing’s warm hand cupping his cheek. Then he’s face to face with Yixing, whose eyeliner makes his warm chocolate gaze stand out so prettily, and the traces of red gloss on his lips accentuate his pout and remind Baekhyun of that time Yixing had helped him with his makeup. 

“I like your makeup,” Baekhyun whispers. 

“I can share.” Yixing leans down to capture Baekhyun’s lips. His gloss is cherry-flavored, and his breath smells like mint. Baekhyun tries his hardest to remember it, so that he can think about it relentlessly when his throat hurts from commentating during streaming, or when his head is pounding from staring at a screen for too long. Because Yixing kisses with as much passion as he skates with, and although Baekhyun is inexperienced and physically shy, he tries to kiss back, to tell Yixing how much he thinks of the skater whenever he’s feeling under the weather. The kisses slowly get deeper and deeper, and when Yixing’s tongue slips into Baekhyun’s mouth, the gamer lets out a small, desperate moan, unconsciously grinding his hips against Yixing. 

_ “Shit,” _ Yixing groans quietly and forces himself to pull away after a few more seconds of heavy making out. Baekhyun glances around to make sure they’re still alone.  _ “The things you do to me…”  _ Baekhyun doesn’t understand, but Yixing’s whisper is hot and heavy against his earlobe, and he shivers. 

“Xing-xing, I have to go,” Baekhyun closes his eyes and leans his head against Yixing’s shoulder. “I… I’ll try to find some time off.” But he knows he won’t have any. 

“You just focus on train hard,” Yixing pulls away, clutching Baekhyun’s hands, and skating backwards slowly as Baekhyun shuffles awkwardly along the ice. “I train hard, too. And after competition, maybe we see each other again.” 

“Hopefully.” Baekhyun smiles. “You have to take me on a real date.” 

“OK.” Yixing looks delighted at the opportunity. 

“Thank you for showing me your… routine? Program? I don’t know. Thank you. It was so cool to watch.” 

“I am happy you can see it,” Yixing’s smile is filled with contentment. “Text me, baobei.” 

“Of course I will. When do I not text you?” 

“You text a lot,” Yixing admits. “But is okay, because I lo--like it.” 

“It better be okay, cutie. You’re not getting rid of me that easily.” Baekhyun breathes a sigh of relief as he reaches solid ground without breaking any limbs. “Mmmm, I’m already missing you.” 

“Me, too,” Yixing admits, brushing Baekhyun’s soft brown hair back from his forehead while Baekhyun reluctantly hands the jacket back to Yixing. “Do you want… keep one?” Yixing asks somewhat nervously. 

“Keep what?” 

“Jacket.” 

“THAT one?” Baekhyun’s eyes grow wide as he motions to the team jacket. 

“No, no. Another… one second.” Yixing steps off the ice without even putting his skate guards on and takes Baekhyun’s hand to lead him into the locker room. He rummages through his skate bag and pulls out a comfy hoodie that he wears when lounging around in the chilly ice rink. “Here.” 

“I can keep it?” Baekhyun clutches the hoodie tight to his chest. Yixing nods fervently. 

“Yes.” 

“I’m gonna sleep in it,” Baekhyun blurts out, and Yixing’s heart soars. 

“Good.” Yixing ruffles Baekhyun’s hair and drops a lingering kiss onto his cheek. “You can go now.” 

“Okay _ , _ ” Baekhyun whispers. Yixing holds the locker room door open for him. “Bye, babe.” 

“Bye, baobei.” Yixing smiles. “Will see you soon.” 

“Real soon,” Baekhyun promises. “Definitely.” 

Bonus time! Rough sketches of all our favorite skaters' costumes. Things that look like dots represent rhinestones or other sparkly things.

SP - Short Program. FS - Free Skate / Long Program.

### Jinki

SP: Nessun Dorma x Turandot (left)  
FS: To Build A Home (right)  
  
Our SP costume inspiration:  
  
Our FS costume inspiration:  


### Yixing

SP: Odyssey from LoL (left)  
FS: La Terre Vue du Ciel (right)  
  
Our SP costume inspiration:  
  
Our FS costume inspiration:  


### Minho

SP: Assassin’s Tango (left)  
FS: Phantom of the Opera (right)  
  
Our FS costume inspiration:  


### Sehun

SP: Back to Black (left)  
FS: Requiem for a Tower x Kashmir x Sarabande (right)  
  
Our (unfortunate) FS costume inspiration:  


### Jongin

SP: Writing’s on the Wall (left)  
FS: Lilies of the Valley (right)  
  
Our SP costume inspiration:  


### Taemin

SP: Slave (left)  
FS: One Winged Angel x Aerith’s Theme (right)  
  
Our SP costume inspiration:  
  
Our FS costume inspiration:  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> First things first, here are the rest of the programs that I have yet to reveal:  
>  [Sehun's FS: Requiem for a Tower by Escala](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8babtUUPU6Q) This would definitely be combined with other tracks, probably from 'Sarabande' or 'Kashmir'.  
>  [Minho's SP: Assassin's Tango by John Powell](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fNk9rvacryo)  
>  [Yixing's SP: Odyssey Login Screen from League of Legends](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Dy58gGFpagI) Can I just say, I LOVE this short program to death. It's really a fantastic piece to be skated to. ;) Yixing has good taste.  
>  I _might_ do a list of program music in a future a/n just so you guys can find all the pieces in one place, but we'll see :D  
>  I hope the questionably sketched costumes help; pls note there is a reason I write fanfic and do not touch fan art other than to admire a skillset I ~~obviously~~ do not have :3 They're more just as an aid to help you visualize the designs anyways, and your imagination is mightier than the pen. Ah, the perks of writing about a sport with music, fashion, and athleticism all combined. ~~Kpop_irl~~  
>  Looking forward to your lovely comments. TYSM to Aranee as usual. ;)
> 
> Didn't justafei do an amazing job with all the costume sketches? :O I'm in awe! This might have taken even longer, but every new comment gave such a huge boost in motivation! Thank you so much that you keep liking our story and that you take the time to tell us about it in the comments <3!
> 
> Short reminder that popping a jump means involuntarily doing less rotations than one had planned (e.g. Quad -> Triple).
> 
> We borrowed some of the designs from various stage outfits or photo shoots, some from real skate outfits and made the rest of them up ourselves. Let's see how the skating world will react to Taemin's slightly modified Door outfit =D.
> 
> See you soon~


	18. Chapter 18

**Notes for the Chapter:**

>  _Italic_ speech is Mandarin Chinese.
> 
> You will see blue boxes throughout this chapter that tell you to tap or hover them. We added visual representation of the scores, looking like the ISU scores on TV, to help you keep track of where everyone is standing. Since we don't want to spoil you while you are still reading, we added spoilers that you will have to remove by either hovering your mouse over them or tapping them if you are on mobile once you reach the box when reading. Enjoy~

One week after their mock competition, Jongin leans over the counter to get closer to the bathroom mirror in his apartment. 

“Nini!” Jongdae calls as Jongin brushes light brown onto his eyelid. 

“Yeah!” 

“When do we have to be at the rink?” 

“30 minutes! I’m almost done,” Jongin stops yelling as Jongdae pokes his head into the bathroom. 

“Well, look at you.” Jongin raises an eyebrow. Sure, his hair is gelled and hairsprayed, and his makeup makes him look radiant, but other than that, he’s still shirtless and wearing pajama bottoms. 

“What’s there to look at?” 

“Are you nervous?” Chanyeol pops his head into the bathroom as well, munching on a handful of grapes. Jongdae opens his mouth for one, and Chanyeol feeds it to him. 

“No. It’s just a local competition.” All of Kibum’s skaters and their families--affectionately dubbed ‘Ki-gang’ to refer to everyone affiliated with Ki-bum that way--use Cherry Blossom Open as a good way to get their feet under themselves at the start of a competition season, and also a giant family reunion. Jongin’s more excited to see his parents again, having moved out a year ago, than he is about competing. “Chanyeollie, could you hand me, the, uh… costume on my bed?” 

“Which one?” 

“I only laid my short program out. Thank you.” Jongin quickly changes into the shirt and his skating pants after receiving them from Chanyeol. “Okay. I think that’s it.” He packs a small bag of makeup wipes, lip tint, and extra hairspray, slips his Team Korea jacket on, and grabs his suitcase. Jongdae and Chanyeol have their puffy winter jackets and a blanket in tow so they can spectate comfortably with all of Ki-gang. “We can go now?” 

“Yes!” Jongdae bounces out the door. “Competition time!” 

The rink where the Cherry Blossom Open is held is absolutely bustling with volunteers, coaches, officials, and skaters alike, rushing to and fro. Tables set up with colorful skating costumes, skating-related jewelry, and event merch cover the open lobby area. This particular rink has two ice surfaces, and both of them are currently occupied--one with a practice ice session, and the other with an ongoing competition. A glance through the window tells Jongin it’s Novice Ladies. Jongin checks in at the front desk and receives his credential. He slips it over his neck, then glances behind him at Jongdae and Chanyeol, who are looking very overwhelmed. 

“Uhh… let me drop my stuff off in the locker room, and I’ll be right back,” he tells his two roommates. There’s a lot to do--Jongin has to find Sehun so they can meet Kibum for off ice warm-up, he’s sure his parents have already arrived as well, and he also has a practice session in thirty minutes. Still, after eleven years of competing, there’s nothing that’s out of the ordinary for Jongin. In fact, it’s exhilarating to finally be back into the swing of competing. Sehun has texted that Ki-gang is in locker room 5, so Jongin opens the door of the left-side rink after the current skater finishes their program, so as to not interrupt their performance, and hurriedly makes his way to the locker rooms, which are located under the bleachers. Sehun is obediently sitting on the bench, while Yixing does his makeup. 

“Heyyy,” Jongin greets, taking up an empty spot next to Taemin and Minho’s stuff. “Where is everyone?” 

“Upstair,” Yixing answers, pursing his lips in concentration while he blends foundation down Sehun’s neck. “And you two have warm up in ten minute.” 

“Okay. I have to go back to Jongdae and Chanyeol, so I’m just gonna go upstairs then.” As fast as he arrived, Jongin leaves again, bringing with him a bottle of water, his earbuds, and phone. He leads Jongdae and Chanyeol up the flight of stairs to the upstairs area, where there is indoor spectator seating close to huge windows that overlook the two ice rinks, and also a wide open space which is scattered with skaters in various stages of warm up. Rows and rows of results are hung up on the far wall, which is where Jongin spots Minho and Jinki, standing in a rather large group of parents, skaters, and coaches. 

“There.” Jongin nods towards Ki-gang. “That’s all of us.” The trio make their way to the group. 

“Nini!” Minho calls, looking up from the conversation. 

“Oh, good.” Kibum looks up from his phone. 

“Mom,” Jongin ignores all of them and throws himself into his mother’s arms. “I missed you.” 

“My Jongin!” His mother hugs him around an armful of blankets and coats. “Oh, sweetheart, let me look at you.” Jongin pulls back slightly to beam at his mother. “You’re so skinny! Are you eating? Oh my gosh, have you grown? It’s so good to see you, my little bear.” 

“Bear?” Minho interjects. 

“It’s a nickname,” Jongin protests, kissing his mother on the cheek. “Have you been well, mom? I’m doing good. Yes, I’m eating, no, I haven’t grown.” 

“So excited to watch you skate,” Jongin’s dad comes up behind his son and claps him on the shoulder. “It’s been a long time.” 

“I… think… I’ve gotten… better?” Jongin lets go of his mother so he can hug his father as well. “Hey, dad. Have you two caught up with everyone?” 

“Yep. We’ve been here for about 10 minutes or so.” Jongin’s mother pats his head, with his hair all stiff from the hairspray and gel. “Jongin-ah, you’re so handsome.” 

“Ah.” Jongin chuckles. “Don’t say that in front of Minho-hyung, mom.” 

“What do you mean?” Minho rolls his eyes. “You are handsome.” 

“See? Wonderful young man.” Jongin’s mother beams while Jongin smothers a laugh. 

“I have to warm up and everything, mom.” 

“Of course. Do your thing. We’ll all be in the stands.” 

“There’s a problem,” Kibum sighs once Jongin has murmured greetings to all the parents and Jonghyun has led them all out of the door and to the top of the bleachers. Jongdae and Chanyeol also follow along with the spectator crowd while Jongin turns to his coach. “Sehun signed up for a practice ice session on the other side of the rink at the same time as you.” 

“Oh.” Jongin shifts. “Well, I can practice on my own, I guess.” 

“That won’t be necessary.” Kibum sighs. “I’ll have Jinki accompany you.” 

“Oh!” Jongin perks up. “Okay!” 

“Jinks, got that?” Kibum looks to the eldest skater, who nods. 

“Okay, and the brat… where is he? We need to start warm-up.” 

“Do you have a game plan?” Jinki inquires, looking relaxed and professional next to Jongin. He’s switched out his team jacket for a long black trench coat and gray scarf, blending in effortlessly with the rest of the coaches. 

“Yeah.” Jongin nods and hands Jinki his water bottle, guards, and tissue box to hold onto. Jinki moves to the line of coaches, which are standing on the side of the rink, while Jongin checks in with the rink monitor. 

“You can get on in just a minute.” Jongin glances around at who else is on his practice ice. There’s not really anyone, just a few Novice men, and three other Juniors who Jongin knows train under Coach Namjoon. Jongin sighs. He’s going to have to be careful to not hit anyone. He wonders if Sehun and Kibum are on the same practice as Coach Woohyun and his two Junior skaters, Yuta and Dongyoung. 

“Skaters, please clear the ice. 4:45 practice group, you have thirty minutes.” Jongin steps on and takes a few fast laps to get his feet under himself before returning to Jinki. 

“You’re jittery,” Jinki notes. “You’re going to burn out way too fast if you don’t calm down a little, dear.” 

“I’m excited,” Jongin admits as much. 

“No jumping until the 15 minute mark.” 

“But--” 

“It’s not about the jumps this time, remember?” Jinki hands Jongin his water bottle. “Get your feet under you. Do a few spins. Do your footwork. Don’t try and show off. Relax.” Jongin takes a small sip and nods. Practice goes smoothly, although he almost crashes into the Novice skaters a couple of times, and there’s a few close calls with Yeonjun. 

“Sorry,” Jongin apologizes once practice ends. Yeonjun holds his hand out for a high-five. 

“All good, Jongin-sunbae. How are you doing?” 

“I’m chill.” Local competitions are always a great time because everyone knows each other from years of competing against or with each other. Jongin always looks forward to seeing all his friends again at events like these. “How’s your Triple Axel going?” 

“I landed it two weeks ago,” Yeonjun tells him while Jinki comes up behind Jongin. 

“Really?! That’s so good, Yeonjun.” 

“Yeah, but I lost it again like, three days ago because I’ve just been focusing on my program.” Yeonjun slides his guards on and Jongin copies him. 

“You’ll get it back.” 

“Yeah. How’s your Flip?” 

“Landed, but also not prioritized.” 

“What are you doing in Junior if you have a Quad Flip?” Soobin joins in the conversation. 

“Hey, Soobinnie. And it’s because I want to compete JGP,” Jongin explains. “Get some international recognition before I move up.” 

“Ahh, I see.” 

“Gotta go, Nini.” Jinki speaks up. “Namjoon, nice to see you.” 

“Ah--I’ll see you two later! Good luck!” Jongin is pulled away as the other coach and skaters wave them off. 

“You’re friends with them?” Jinki asks in surprise. Namjoon’s team usually makes Nationals, but never places within the Top 10. They’re above average, but not good enough to make the National team or be considered elite. 

“Because I used to be like them.” Jongin sighs. “Not filtered out, but never noticed. Always just a little too inconsistent. Almost there, almost good enough, almost in Top 10.” 

“I forgot.” Jinki drapes an arm around Jongin’s shoulders. “That makes sense.” 

“I’m not bitter about it. We’re good friends still, but it’s just… different now? Because I made it and they… like. Haven’t. Yet.” 

“I understand. It was like that for Minho and I as well. We left a lot of people behind when we finally broke through. Sometimes it’s just the nature of the sport.” 

“I know.” Jongin reaches for a tissue and blows his nose. 

“Good practice, by the way. You seemed a lot calmer by the end.” 

“It felt good.” 

“Awesome.” 

“You’re last to skate in the second warm up,” Kibum tells Jongin when he and Jinki make it to the other rink. “Sehun is second in the first warm up. I’ll be with him first, then you. You’ll probably have to put your skates on right after Sehun skates.” 

“Okay.” Jongin nods. 

“How was practice?” 

“Really great,” Jinki chirps. “He was giddy, so we didn’t jump a lot.” 

“Perfect. Well, just relax a bit and keep warm, okay? Sehun, you only have about thirty minutes, so I suggest you take your skates off and keep moving around a little.” Kibum waves the two of them off. 

“Do you need anything?” Jinki asks. 

“Where’s Jun?” Sehun inquires. 

“He’s upstairs, watching with your parents.” Kibum motions to the set of stairs a few meters away from them that lead to the bleachers and the balcony that leads back into the warm-up room and interior spectator area. “Just don’t get distracted. Jinks, for the practices…” The two of them wander away, leaving Jongin and Sehun alone. 

“I’m just gonna get my earbuds and chill upstairs,” Jongin explains. 

“We can just stick together then.” The two of them untie their skates, then make their way upstairs, where Junmyeon is cheerfully talking to Sehun’s parents. Upon their arrival, Junmyeon stands up and embraces Sehun lightly. 

“Hello, gorgeous.” He whispers it, so that his parents don’t overhear. “You practiced beautifully.” 

“I’m nervous, Jun.” Sehun swallows hard while Jongin disappears around the corner to walk through his program off-ice, then stretch and stay warm. “It’s just a local competition, but I’m still nervous.” 

“It’s okay to be nervous,” Junmyeon consoles. “What did Kibum say to do?” 

“Keep warm and keep moving.” 

“Then you do what you need to,” Junmyeon tells him, leading him to an empty spot in the wide open area. “And I’m going to stand right here, where you can see me, and I’ll keep you company, okay?” 

“Okay.” Sehun’s hands are shaking a little. Junmyeon pulls him around the corner and carefully clasps his hand. 

“You’re okay, sweetheart.” He brings Sehun’s hand up to his lips. “Turn all the nervousness into adrenaline.” 

“It’s Junior…” 

“It makes no difference to me. All I want to see is you.” 

“What if I fall?” 

“Ice is slippery.” 

“I don’t want Kibum to get mad.” 

“Why would he, if you do your best?” Junmyeon answers all of Sehun’s questions patiently and pragmatically. With each worry quelled, Sehun relaxes more and more. “Don’t forget you can stay over tonight,” Junmyeon smiles. “It’ll be lots of fun, yeah? You haven’t slept over in a few weeks now. And we’re all here, cheering you on--nobody cares if you make a few mistakes.” 

“I love you.” Sehun backs away to walk through his program with peace of mind. Junmyeon leans against the wall to watch, just as he promised to. 

“I know you do.” Junmyeon smiles while Sehun scowls at having his declaration remain unrequited. 

JUNIOR MEN - SHORT PROGRAM, STARTING ORDER

1 |  Yeonjun CHOI  
---|---  
2 |  Sehun OH  
3 |  Soobin CHOI  
4 |  Yuta NAKAMOTO  
5 |  Taehyun KANG  
6 |  Dongyoung KIM  
7 |  Jongin KIM  
  
www.isu.org

“Representing Luv Little Freaks Skating, please welcome to the ice, Sehun Oh!” 

“SEHUN!” The bleachers erupt into absolute chaos. Minho, Junmyeon, and Jonghyun yell at the top of their lungs. Jinki and Yixing frantically flap a cheering banner that Jonghyun and the skaters’ parents had prepared for each skater. Taemin, Jongdae, and Chanyeol clap and stamp their feet, while all the parents also join in the screaming and cheering as Sehun gets the customary slap on the back from Kibum down on the ice and presents to the judges and audience. The cheering doesn’t stop until Sehun takes his place, and even then, Minho shouts into the quiet rink. 

“Se-hunnie!!!” There’s a few giggles from the rest of the audience, then the music starts. 

“First year in Junior, decided that he would move up instead of compete Novice for his second year,” Jonghyun, with his years of experience in radio hosting and figure skating spectating, plays the role of a flawless commentator for Ki-gang. “Nonetheless, he’s got a difficult program planned for this competition. Skating to ‘Back to Black’ by The Bryan Ferry Orchestra. First up is his Triple Flip.” Everyone holds their breath until Sehun glides smoothly out of it. “Nice landing.” 

“Folks, Sehun is definitely not to be underestimated,” Minho joins in the commentary. “During his first and only year in Novice, he broke his personal best by seven points to place in the Top 10 at Nationals.” 

“Quite right, Minho-ssi, and with this being just the start of the season, we can definitely expect a lot more from him--if that stunning Triple Lutz-Triple Toe combination was anything to go by!” Jonghyun claps along with everyone else as Sehun lands his big point-getter in the short program. “Wow! Absolutely flawless, he’ll definitely be getting some plus GOEs for that one.” 

“Last jumping pass here, Triple Axel, he’s struggled with this in the past--” Minho holds his breath. “Ah, no, he falls on it, but right back up he goes to deliver his step sequence. Jonghyun-ssi, pay attention to the intricacy of his skating skills and his easy carriage across the ice. We hardly ever see this kind of control in Junior skaters, and it’s so refreshing to see a younger skater focus less on their Quads and place more emphasis on overall great skating.” 

“Oh, absolutely. Sehun’s got everything he needs to make an amazing Junior debut at Nationals this year, it seems. Bravo!” The dynamic duo drop the act and return to their obnoxious fanboying when the music ends. “OH SE-HUN! OH SE-HUN! OH SE-HUN!” 

“I told him he would do great,” Junmyeon announces, smiling from ear to ear as he applauds his boyfriend next to Sehun’s parents. “Of course he did amazing.” 

Down at the edge of the rink, Jongin embraces a sweaty, gasping Sehun as soon as Kibum finishes ruffling his hair and patting him hard on the back. 

“You did amazing, Sehunnie--I have to put my skates on, tell me what your score is!” Jongin calls. 

“Good luck,” Sehun calls while Jongin jogs back to the locker rooms. 

“Good boy. Triple Axel was a little tilted in the air and wrapped, but we’ll work on that. Solid overall.” Kibum delivers his critique while they wait around for the scores to be announced--at a local competition, there isn’t a kiss and cry bench. 

“The short program score for Sehun Oh, please.” Sehun wipes sweat from off of his forehead. “57.88. He is currently in first place.” 

CURRENT STANDINGS

1 |  Sehun OH | 57.88  
---|---|---  
2 |  Yeonjun CHOI | 36.53  
  
www.isu.org

“Well done!” Kibum thumps him on the back. “If you’d landed that Triple Axel, you would probably hit 62. That’s really great news, Sehun.” 

“Nini?” Jongin looks up from tying his skates on the bench to see Taemin making his way into the locker room. 

“Taeminnie!” 

“Good luck.” Taemin tells him, offering his friend a radiant smile that makes Jongin’s stomach churn more than the thought of competing. “I watched your practice. You look good. That Triple-Triple looks fantastic.” 

“You watched?” 

“Yes, I was watching from upstairs with my parents.” Jongin stands up and Taemin embraces him in a tight hug. “Good luck, Nini bear.” 

“Gahhh.” Jongin blushes at the use of ‘bear’. “It’s… just a nickname from when I was little…”

“It suits you so well.” Taemin carefully tucks a stray lock of hair back into place for him, and Jongin could faint right then and there. “When do you skate?” 

“Last,” Jongin stammers out. Could he not compete? Is it too late to just withdraw and have Taemin hold him in his arms forever? 

“Of course you do,” Taemin teases. “National Junior bronze medalist. Everyone will be looking forward to your performance.” 

“Taem, please.” Jongin rolls his eyes. 

“Fighting, Nini bear. We’re all cheering you on.” 

“Taeminnie…” Maybe it’s the butterflies in his stomach from the fact that he’s about to compete. Maybe it’s Taemin’s arms that are still warm and comforting around Jongin’s waist. Maybe it’s his cheeks that Jongin’s adored from the start, and the fact that they puff out so cutely just for Jongin. Regardless, Jongin wants to confess  _ so _ badly. Taemin’s eyes are as mischievous as ever, even though there’s a hint of narrowed focus because the elder has practice ice right after Jongin finishes competing. Jongin looks into them and nearly melts. “Um…” 

“You should go now,” Taemin prompts, pulling Jongin in for one more quick hug and then stepping away, much to Jongin’s disappointment. “Kibum will get mad.” 

“Okay,” Jongin loses his courage. “Thank you.” 

“I’ll be watching! We all will.” 

“There you are.” Kibum bounces from foot to foot as Jongin walks out of the locker room, still slightly dazed from Taemin and his interaction. “You good?” 

“Yeah.” Yuta’s on the ice at the moment, and Jongin watches him just to refocus his mind on the competition. 

“You got lucky. Only 2 other skaters on your warm-up,” Kibum tells him. “You know what you’re going to do, right?” 

“Yes.” Yuta lands a flawless Triple Salchow, and Jongin claps his gloved hands together. The rest of his program is pretty good as well. The three skaters from the last warm-up group crowd closer and closer to the rink door as Yuta steps off the ice. 

“Will the following competitors please take the ice for their warm-up… Taehyun Kang. Dongyoung Kim. Jongin Kim.” 

“NINI, NINI, NINI, NINI,” There goes Ki-gang again. Kibum rolls his eyes while Jongin steps onto the ice for his warm-up. Two laps. Back-scratch spin in the middle. A massive Single Axel that has Sehun, who has joined the rest of Ki-gang, wolf-whistling from the stands, but Jongin barely hears it. A Double Axel, then straight to all of his Triples. Jongin takes the Triple Lutz-Triple Toe from the steps, and falls down on the Toe. 

“Nini!” Kibum waves Jongin back to where he’s standing. “You’re still jittery.” 

“I guess.” 

“I want you to leave the jumps and go do a nice combination spin.” 

“But my Triple Axel--” 

“Leave it. Combination spin, now.” Kibum’s voice is no-nonsense. “Don’t pull a Taemin, Nini.” And by that, he means  _ listen to the coach.  _ Jongin does his flying camel combination spin. 

“Good. And now go do two more laps of skating skills.” Jongin obeys. “Now  _ leave  _ the Lutz-Toe, and go warm up your Triple Axel. But  _ don’t  _ do a Triple Axel.” Jongin does his Double Axel-Double Axel combination, pulls into another scratch spin, and then is kicked off the ice as his time runs out. 

“Perfect.” Kibum holds his skate guards out to him. 

“But I barely jumped.” Jongin’s beginning to get nervous now. 

“That’s fine. Your body will know what to do.” Kibum remains calm and unworried. “You’ll do great. Stay warm, since you’re last to skate. Here.” Kibum unzips his giant coaching jacket and drapes it around Jongin’s shoulders. 

“Wow, this is warm.” 

“Of course. Gotta put up with you brats everyday for hours.” Kibum jokes, and Jongin laughs sheepishly. Kibum keeps talking, sometimes about skating, sometimes about something completely off topic. All of it is just to keep Jongin’s mind off of being nervous. 

“Sehun did good,” Jongin murmurs. 

“Hm? Yes, he did well. He always says he won’t, and then he ends up doing well. Can’t take anything he says too seriously.” Kibum hums and taps his foot. “Okay, I think Dongyoung’s about halfway done with his program. I’ll take my coat back.” The giant parka is removed, and Jongin shivers. “I’ll take your jacket, too.” Jongin unzips his precious Team jacket, and the cold seeps in through his thin outfit. “Your costume looks good.” 

“Because of Coach.” 

“Thank you, dear, I’m glad you like it.” Woohyun’s student finishes and the audience bursts into applause. “Alrighty.” 

There’s about two minutes in between each skater while the judges calculate scores, so Jongin uses the time to do two laps and another back scratch spin. Then Kibum calls him over to do their ritual. 

“Alright.” Kibum holds his hands out, and Jongin takes them. “Breathe.” Jongin inhales through his nose, and exhales through his mouth. Once. Twice. “Hold the third.” Jongin inhales and holds it, staring into Kibum’s eyes until his coach releases his breath as well. “Trust your training. Trust your coaches. And most of all, trust yourself to just do what you do every freakin day.” Jongin nods as Kibum grips his hands tighter and pulls him closer. “You get out there and get. Your. Shit. Done. You can do it.” 

“Yes.” Jongin nods. 

“Let’s put our hands together for Jongin Kim!” A raucous cry for ‘Nini!’ sounds in the stands, and Kibum claps Jongin on the back. 

“Go, Nini.” Jongin pushes off and presents to the judges and the audience. Even though he begins to enter tunnel vision, he can still see Jonghyun and Yixing flapping his banner obnoxiously while Jongdae, Chanyeol, and Minho do some crazy little jig. Jongin turns away from them and falls into position. His mind clouds and all he registers is the feeling of being so very alone. It’s just him on the cold ice, accompanied by nothing but a glittering costume, a ton of hairspray, and a pair of skates. The music sounds, and Jongin starts. Muscle memory takes over as Jongin skates his program just the way he’s always trained it in practice. The Triple Lutz-Triple Toe is scratchy, but cleanly rotated. He barely even remembers going into the Triple Salchow, but he must’ve landed it because he’s already flying into his combination spin. Triple Axel is up next--the one that Jongin hadn’t warmed up--and it must rattle his focus a little because Jongin draws out of his fuzzy little cloud of muscle memory and starts hyperfocusing on little details. The slightest bit of hesitance on the takeoff results in a step-out on the landing. But he stays on his feet, and the cheering from the stands gets increasingly louder as he starts his step sequence. The last two spins are performed in a blur, and then it’s done. He starts registering everything again, including the “KIM JONG-IN! KIM JONG-IN! KIM JONG-IN!” that becomes so loud that he can’t even hear the announcement that ‘this concludes the Junior Men’s short program’ as he glides off the ice. 

“Nini bear, you did so well,” Taemin throws himself at Jongin, hugging him for just a fraction of a second before he rushes away to get his skates on for practice. His mother embraces him, then Jongdae and Chanyeol are burying him in a massive group hug as they rush down from the bleachers to greet him. Kibum draws him into an embrace, too, once Sehun is done attacking him and the Seniors are shooed off to get ready for practice ice. 

“Stayed on your feet. Toldya you could do it. Next time don’t be so afraid of Axel.” Kibum pats Jongin on the head. “Good boy. Are you happy?” 

“Yeah.” Jongin nods. 

“The score for Jongin Kim… 62.55. He is currently in first place.”

JUNIOR MEN, STANDINGS AFTER SHORT PROGRAM

1 |  Jongin KIM | 62.55  
---|---|---  
2 |  Dongyoung KIM | 60.11  
3 |  Sehun OH | 57.88  
4 |  Yuta NAKAMOTO | 57.65  
5 |  Soobin CHOI | 44.27  
6 |  Yeonjun CHOI | 36.53  
7 |  Taehyun KANG | 32.07  
  
www.isu.org

“Well, no surprise there.” But Kibum and Jongin are both beaming. First place always feels special, no matter how unsurprising. 

MEN - SHORT PROGRAM, STARTING ORDER

1 |  Taehyung KIM  
---|---  
2 |  Jimin PARK  
3 |  Minho CHOI  
4 |  Yixing ZHANG  
5 |  Jungkook JEON  
6 |  Yoongi MIN  
7 |  Changmin SHIM  
8 |  Jinki LEE  
9 |  Kyuhyun CHO  
10 |  Taemin LEE  
  
www.isu.org

Jongin doesn’t visit Taemin in the locker room like the elder had for him, although he would have liked to do so. He knows Taemin usually prays right before a competition, and that he likes to be left alone. So he sits in the stands, warm and cozy between Jongdae and Chanyeol, with a cup of Minho’s mother’s hot chocolate in his hands, watching Minho and Yixing circle the ice in the first warm-up group, lapping Taehyung, Jimin, and Jungkook. Minho’s eyes are so fierce that nobody dares to get in his way. Sehun and Jongin make fun of this particular fact, right up until it’s Minho’s turn to skate and he scores a whopping 94.76 with an albeit scratchy, but clean program. 

CURRENT STANDINGS

1 |  Minho CHOI | 94.76  
---|---|---  
2 |  Jimin PARK | 60.89  
3 |  Taehyung KIM | 58.52  
  
www.isu.org

“Flaming Charisma Minho,” Jonghyun sighs dramatically, still engrossed in commentating. “Exactly what you expect, and always a little bit more.” 

Yixing does well, too, even though he blatantly underrotates his Quad Lutz a little. Then comes the second warm-up, with Changmin, Taemin, Jinki, and Kyuhyun. Jinki skates damn near perfect, and Jongin scuttles down from the stands to jump on him as soon as Kibum lets him go from a fierce hug. 

“Hyung! You did amazing!” 

“Thank you, dear.” Jinki is still breathing heavily, but he positively beams at Jongin and pulls him close. “Go back upstairs, we still need to watch Taemin after Kyuhyun.” Instead, Jongin hands his half-finished cup of hot chocolate to Jinki and sticks to his side in search of cuddles while they watch the second half of Kyuhyun’s program. Then Taemin gets on the ice, and Jongin’s heart begins to pound. He looks so dangerously sexy, with those hooded eyelids, accentuated by Jonghyun’s makeup job, and that white leather harness makes Jongin jittery with want. 

“Let’s go upstairs,” Jinki suggests, so the two of them traipse back up to Ki-gang--Jinki’s skates echoing loudly on the metal seats--where Jongdae is practically eye-fucking Taemin from the bleachers. 

“Nini, you have such good taste in men,” Jongdae announces a little too loudly. 

“Shut up.” Jongin turns bright red. Chanyeol bursts into laughter, but even he is ogling Taemin. Jongin steals a hesitant look at his mother. Luckily, she’s in deep conversation with the other parents, so she hasn't heard. Sehun, on the other hand, snickers and turns around to smirk at Jongin. Junmyeon wraps a hand around Sehun’s waist and leans his head on the younger’s shoulder. 

“You better claim him soon, otherwise I call dibs,” Jongdae murmurs. 

“No.” Jongin pouts. 

“Please welcome to the ice, Taemin Lee!” 

“Taeminnie!” Minho roars, and Yixing frantically unfurls the younger’s banner and shoves the other end into Jonghyun’s hands. 

“Go, Taeminnie!” Jonghyun screams along with Jongin and Sehun. 

“Taemin!” The call can be heard from all parts of the bleachers, even those who aren’t from Ki-gang. Looking around, Jongin notices other skaters--younger, less experienced, or even those who were in the first warm-up group--cheering and clapping for the reigning World Silver Medalist. Seems like everyone is curious to see how he’ll do. A collective gasp goes up in the crowd when Taemin’s full outfit goes on display as he circles the ice and shakes his legs out, and even more whispers of excitement can be heard when the music begins. Jongin just smiles to himself. Suddenly, he’s never felt so… exclusive. Knowing that he gets to see Taemin everyday, have lunch with him, watch his programs… Jongin snuggles closer to Jinki and watches Taemin happily. This is his second family--his elite, world-renowned, sought-after teammates, who love him dearly and accept him as one of them. Jongin realizes that to the outside public, they must be so intimidating, with their National Team status and impressive competitive record. Even Sehun’s name is noted and talked about when it gets spotted on the roster. And in hindsight, when Jongin had first joined Kibum in order to train, hadn’t he also been afraid of Minho’s death stare and Taemin’s technical finesse? But to Jongin, these people aren’t scary at all anymore. Jinki makes amazing chicken salad and horrible puns. Minho teaches him party tricks on the ice. Yixing does impromptu girl group dances and carries hard melon-flavored candies in his pockets. Sehun just loves Junmyeon and being around his hyungs. And Taemin… even in that sinful costume, landing his Quad Lutz-Triple Loop that sends the crowd into hysterics, Jongin can’t help but think about how sweet Taemin was when he wished Jongin good luck. Or how fun their conversations are when they get banana milk with no sugar together after workouts. Or how warm his little hands are, cupped around Jongin’s. That’s who these people are to him--not intimidating, or untouchable, or unapproachable. They’re funny and chaotic and passionate. They complain and cry and get discouraged. Those awe-inspiring three minutes that Taemin spends on the ice, holding his audience spellbound with his sensual facial expressions and graceful skating skills are only a fraction of who he is, Jongin knows. And when he hits his final pose, Jongin gets up on his feet, along with the rest of the crowd, to scream his head off. 

“Lee Tae-min! Lee Tae-min! Lee Tae-min!” 

“Taemin-ah!” Jongin is the first to reach him and throw his arms around him after his 98.38 lands him in first place in front of a very aggrieved Minho. “You were amazing, everyone was talking about you, your costume, your program, you were so beautiful, so sexy--” Jongin goes red as the words spill out of his mouth, but Taemin only laughs and hugs him back. The leather harness and skin-clinging mesh presses against Jongin, who suddenly goes light-headed. Forget what he said about Taemin being cute and approachable, Lee Taemin is dangerous and downright immoral _._

“I landed the Lutz-Loop!” 

“I KNOW! Taemin-ah, it was so good,” Jongin coos. He can see Jonghyun tapping his foot, waiting to give Taemin a hug, but Jongin monopolizes the skater gleefully. 

“Well, I had a scratchy landing.” 

“But it was amazing. You should’ve heard the cheers when you landed it--” 

“Oh, take your time, Nini,” Minho calls sarcastically. “Not like the rest of us are waiting to tackle him or whatever.” 

“And you were SO breathtaking, Taeminnie, I couldn’t take my eyes off of you,” Jongin rushes out in a burst of confidence before realizing that might be a bit overboard. “I mean--” 

“Ah, it makes me so happy to hear you say that.” Taemin beams while Jongin tries to backtrack. 

“Oh, I…” Jongin falters, but only out of sheer joy. 

“Thank you, Nini bear.” Taemin steps in for one more hug, and Jongin’s head spins as he registers the faint scent of lavender underneath the makeup and sweat. “Hyung, how was it?” Taemin moves away so that Jonghyun can pull him into a rib-crushing hold. “Ow, ow, ow!” 

“Yo! Changmin!” Minho calls, and the other skater stops in his tracks to approach Minho. Kyuhyun follows behind him. “Bro, you…” Minho shakes his head. “Why’d you fall?” 

“Why does that sound like I decided to fall?” Changmin bursts into self-pitying laughter. “Because I under-rotated. Did you want a technical answer for that?” 

“Chami, you’re slackinggg,” Kyuhyun singsongs as Minho slips an arm around the other skater. Kyuhyun’s sitting in a comfortable fourth after the short, and Minho second, whereas Changmin has slipped down to sixth. Not that placement really matters at such a local competition, but Minho has never turned down an opportunity to be competitive about the smallest things. 

MEN, STANDINGS AFTER SHORT PROGRAM

1 |  Taemin LEE | 98.38  
---|---|---  
2 |  Minho CHOI | 94.76  
3 |  Yixing ZHANG | 88.31  
4 |  Kyuhyun CHO | 87.46  
5 |  Jinki LEE | 87.22  
6 |  Changmin SHIM | 78.48  
7 |  Jimin PARK | 60.89  
8 |  Taehyung KIM | 58.52  
9 |  Jungkook JEON | 56.35  
10 |  Yoongi MIN | 55.37  
  
www.isu.org

“Quad Lutz-Triple Toe is new to me, okay?” Changmin turns his nose up at the other two. “I changed out my Flip-Toe. I’m not surprised I fell.” 

“Lutz was never your strong suit,” Minho observes. 

“Well, it’s a burner competition anyways, might as well try it.” 

“Um… excuse me?” Changmin, Minho, and Kyuhyun all turn to a group of younger skaters, still in their colorful dresses and makeup. “Could we get your autograph?” 

“Of course!” Changmin kindly accepts the paper and pen that he is passed. “Do you want me to just pass it down the line?” 

“Yes, please. I’m such a huge fan of you,” one of the skaters gushes, looking awestruck. Jongin watches to the side, amused beyond belief as Minho scribbles at least five signatures. The sight attracts more skaters as they are leaving after spectating, who also start to gather around. Jonghyun gently pushes Taemin towards the general area. Then Jinki is noticed. And suddenly, the competition turns into a fansign. Sehun and Jongin are beside themselves with laughter, but the older skaters deal with the fame like it’s nothing, smiling for picture after picture, scribbling autographs on notebooks and competition merchandise and napkins. It takes almost twenty minutes for the crowd to disperse, and when it does, Jongin comes up to Jinki with his phone. 

“Jinki-ssi, will you please, please, take a photo with me, I’m literally your biggest fan, I go to all your competitions.” It takes Jinki a second, but once he realizes it’s Jongin, he grabs him by the jacket and delivers a forehead flick that has Jongin yelping in pain. 

“Yahhh, this kid,” Jinki tucks Jongin under his arm playfully. “You think it’s funny now, but wait until you move up to Senior and start signing napkins.” Jongin is relentless as he squirms out of Jinki’s grasp. 

“Taemin-sunbae, please take a photo with me--” Taemin dissolves into laughter while Jongin holds his phone out to Sehun so that he can take the picture. “I’m serious! Sunbae, I’m a huge fan, you skated amazing today. I can’t believe I get to see you! Do you have any tips for me to land my Double Axel, sunbae? I want to compete against you!” Jongin is laughing now, too, holding onto Taemin as Sehun snaps picture after picture of the two. They have photos together now, Jongin realizes when he takes his phone back and flips through the candids of the two of them giggling at each other. Taemin is still in his glittering, sexy costume, but he has the biggest smile on his face as he laughs at Jongin, and Jongin looks gorgeous in his Team South Korea jacket, laughing insouciantly, with his arm around Taemin’s waist. 

“Send that to me,” Taemin murmurs, leaning against Jongin to see the pictures. Jongin’s heart is fit to burst. “They’re so cute.” 

“Will you edit it?” Jongin asks, remembering how Taemin is interested in photography these days. 

“Of course I will.” 

宝贝 (Baobei) 

宝贝，你怎么样？ 

Baobei, how are you? 

You compete soon? 

宝贝 (Baobei) 

Yea at 9 

It’s Dashing Buffalo v Griffin rn 

LCK has already won the first 2 matches, so it’s looking good for us :3 

Have you competed yet? 

I am third 

Clean program 

宝贝 (Baobei) 

AHHH 

SO PROUD OF YOUUUUU 

XING XING~~ 

Thank you 

♡♡♡♡♡ 

宝贝 (Baobei) 

I gotta go im sorry 

Wish i could talk more 

>没事的～ 加油 

It’s okay~ good luck 

宝贝 (Baobei) 

Im so proud 

Tell me how tmrw goes :D 

I will~ 

Tell me how you do :) 

“You good?” Kibum comes up out of nowhere behind Yixing, who startles and shoves his phone back in his pocket. 

“Yes.” 

“Texting your boyfriend?” Kibum sighs as he takes off his thick parka. 

“Yes,” Yixing murmurs, turning slightly pink. 

“Is he doing well?” Kibum sits down next to Yixing. They’re upstairs, watching the Zamboni slowly trundle around the rink and lay a sheet of water down. The rink is pretty empty now, as Senior Men’s short program was the last event of the day. All the vendors are packing things up, and only a few skaters remain, dashing to and fro to take pictures at the podium. Yixing’s short program bronze medal hangs around his neck, already forgotten. 

“He is busy. But good.” 

“It’s nice to see you adjusting after a few years here,” Kibum comments, taking a sip of his iced coffee. Yixing looks to his coach. “You’ve been a lot happier this year, it seems.” 

“I think this year… my third year… easier. And I also improve a lot more, so it feel like everything become worth it,” Yixing confides. 

“You are improving. You did good today. And you’ll do even better as the year continues.” Kibum sighs. “I’m so tired from standing around all afternoon. Geez.” Yixing laughs politely. 

“You work hard today, Coach-nim.” 

“You, too, Zhang Yixing.” Kibum turns towards him with his signature smile. “I’m proud of you. You and everyone else. Not just with how you all did today. Just in general.” 

“I think everyone do good,” Yixing murmurs. “Like, Nini very happy today. He not this happy last year either.” 

“No. He was burnt out last year. He came to me ready to quit,” Kibum confides in the older skater. “I was his last straw.” 

“He seem so much better today. More confident.” 

“Oh, yes. You guys have helped him get to where he is today as well.” Kibum crosses his arms and watches the Zamboni tiredly for a bit. “I’m glad I have skaters like you, Yixing.” 

“Me?” Yixing looks to Kibum in surprise. 

“Yeah. You, Jinki, and Minho. You know I don’t see you three as my students, right? If anything, we’re equals.” Kibum motions between himself and Yixing. “We’re a team.” 

“Little ones are handful.” Yixing laughs. 

“Yes, Taemin, and Nini, and Sehunnie. My little brats.” Kibum’s voice is soft and affectionate. “They have their own problems as well.” 

“Oh?” Yixing turns to Kibum. 

“I don’t mean Sehun’s wrapping problem or Jongin’s lack of confidence.” Kibum gives Yixing a meaningful look. “Sehun holds a grudge against me because I moved him up to Junior, doesn’t he?” 

“Uhhh…” Yixing hesitates, surprised that Kibum is so perceptive. “He not mad.” 

“No, he’s not mad. But he’d rather be in Novice.” Kibum taps his cheek thoughtfully. “I’m not worried, though. That’s something he’ll get over once he performs well.” 

“You know a lot,” Yixing states rather plainly. 

“There are many things that affect my skaters’ performances. Being a psychologist and a therapist just comes with the job.” The corner of Kibum’s mouth quirks up. “I know a lot more than you think.” 

“Like what?” 

“Your boyfriend plays for SKT T1. He’s Kyoong.” At this, Yixing audibly gasps. He’s definitely never talked about Baekhyun with Kibum before. Kibum looks at him, amused. “Don’t be so impressed. All he wears is his team t-shirts when he visits you.” 

“Oh--” 

“I saw you perform your short program for him after the mock competition.” 

“I--” Yixing blushes violently as he thinks about how sweet and intimate they were. Was Kibum watching the whole thing…? “Everything?” he asks faintly. 

“No, I just watched you land your combination at the beginning. I was leaving the rink.” Kibum smiles. “You two are cute.” 

“Thank you.” Yixing feels a little faint. 

“I’m just saying.” Kibum stands up. “Even if you don’t think I know, I know. I see you all everyday. There’s not much you can hide.” 

“But that is what make you a good coach,” Yixing says honestly. “Because you care about everything.” 

“I try, Yixing. I want you guys to be happy, even if you had a bad practice or whatever. But I appreciate that very much.” Kibum sighs. “I’m gonna head home. Stay safe and sleep early.” 

“Yes, I will. Be safe, too.” Yixing waves as Kibum walks away. Then a thought hits him. “Coach!” 

“Yes?” Kibum turns around. 

“How much… do you know about Nini? Because he only is your student for short time.” 

“Oh.” Kibum smiles. “Nini likes a particular boy, right?” Yixing covers his mouth with both hands in shock. “Your expression is as good of an answer as any.” Kibum waves. “Good night, Yixing.” 

“And I have no idea what happened, but I smashed into him--” 

“You did what now?” Jongin walks into the locker room after his practice ice the next day to hear Taemin animatedly describing a story to Jinki. 

“I ran over Taehyung on practice ice. And while I was running over him, we crashed into Jimin. And then afterwards, they asked me for my autograph.” 

“What?” Jongin half-laughs, half-worries. “I mean, are they okay? Are you okay? How did you run into two skaters at once?” 

“I don’t know! But they’re fine. I’m fine.” Taemin sighs. “Skating rinks are like a highway. If everyone skates at the same speed and intensity, nothing ever happens. But if Minho and I are flying around, and they don’t skate at the same speed as us, accidents are bound to happen.” 

“As long as you’re okay.” Jonghyun pats him on the head. “C’mere, and let me do your makeup now.” 

“But Junior hasn’t even started.” 

“You’re right after Junior. You think 10 minutes is enough time to do your makeup?” Jonghyun makes Taemin sit down on the benches while Jongin plops down next to him and unties his skates methodically. 

“How was your practice?” Taemin nudges Jongin while Jonghyun carefully clips his hair back. 

“Pretty good. Landed some solid Flip-Euler-Flips.” 

“Yayyy.” Taemin’s a lot more relaxed at this competition than at his international ones, Jongin realizes. The elder usually doesn’t talk to anyone at those once he gets off of practice ice. For Cherry Blossom, everyone seems to be relaxed and unworried about placement, so the competition turns out to be more of a giant social gathering than anything else. 

“Jongin,” Sehun calls. “Kibum wants us for rotations upstairs.” 

“Okie.” 

“Mmm!” Taemin reaches a hand out for Jongin, still trapped by Jonghyun. 

“Umm?” Jongin hesitantly reaches out to Taemin, who grasps his hand and squeezes it lightly. 

“Good luck.” 

“Thank you,” Jongin murmurs, squeezing back gently. His heartbeat quickens again; Taemin gets him more nervous than any competition. “You, too.” 

“There you are!” Kibum’s sitting against the wall with Woohyun right beside him when Sehun and Jongin show up. The two coaches are laughing about something while Dongyoung and Yuta do off-ice rotations in front of them. 

“Good, Doyoungie. Arms up this time,” Woohyun instructs, watching out of the corner of his eye while Kibum talks his ear off. 

“So then I was like, ‘If you let him put one more goddamn body roll in that program, I’m going to quit my job,’ and Minseokkie goes, ‘you may as well quit now, because that kid…’” Kibum fans himself and rolls his eyes. “He has no limit, I’m telling you.” 

“Are you talking about Taemin?” Jongin asks curiously, swinging his arms in a wide circle while Woohyun bursts into laughter. 

“Of course. Such an extra little brat. Do you know, I count the number of times that he listens to me in a day,” he tells Woohyun exasperatedly. “And I think it comes to a grand total of five. Ten, on a good day.” 

“I--! That’s this kid right here.” Woohyun points to Yuta, who throws his coach a side-eye. “Never listens to a thing.” 

“Aish,” Kibum shakes his head. “Sehun, you’re still sticking your butt out when you rotate. Bend and snap, dear.” He watches Sehun do another rotation. “Better.” 

“No, but I was sitting at that stupid council meeting like two weeks ago? You know how they were planning on tweaking a few rules for beginner level tests?” Woohyun joins in the gossip session. 

“Nothing that council says can be good. Why are you even serving?” 

“Well, someone’s gotta keep them on the right track.” 

“SOMEONE--” Kibum collapses. Sehun and Yuta exchange exasperated looks. Dongyoung bites his lip nervously, and Jongin is too busy doing his rotations to bother listening to the coaches’ gossip session. 

“Doyoungie,” there’s a kind voice calling him, then an Olympic jacket is draped over his shoulders as Changmin shows up. “You okay?” 

“Nervous,” Doyoung offers a small smile of gratitude and clutches the jacket tightly, as if it gives him strength. 

“You? Nervous? If you’re nervous, Chami over here has to be quaking,” Minho teases. Of course he’s with Changmin and Kyuhyun. “You’re sitting in second, whereas Changmin…” 

“Exactly. Doyoungie is beating me in placements,” Changmin teases, massaging the younger’s shoulders to get him to loosen up. 

“That’s different. Hyung’s in Senior,” Doyoung protests, but he does look a little more reassured with all three older skaters coddling him. 

“It’s okay, Doyoung.” Kyuhyun smiles reassuringly, then stretches upwards. “I am way too old for this…” 

“Don’t let a reporter hear you say that,” Woohyun looks up. 

“You and Jinki,” Kibum agrees. “Tenacious. I’ll say, I definitely did not have that mindset. Broke my ankle and that was it.” Kibum shakes his head and mimes waving goodbye. “Sayonara.” 

“Is that why you give up whenever your skater puts an extra body roll into the program?” Woohyun teases. 

“Nam Woohyun, you--” 

“He gives up on us everyday,” Minho supplies. “And Kyuhyun won’t retire until we drag him off the ice.”

“Stop talking about it,” Kyuhyun rolls his eyes. “I’m not that old. No need to stir up press speculation just yet--once it starts, it never stops.” 

“S’fine. As long as you keep collecting medals, the Federation won’t give a shit.” Woohyun snorts. “What are you three doing here anyways?” 

“Just wandering around. Keep it,” Changmin pushes his Olympic jacket back towards Doyoung as the younger man tries to give it back. “It’s very warm.” 

“But--” 

“I have my National jacket, I’ll be okay.” 

“Flex. Flex. Flex. Show off.” Kyuhyun and Minho chant while the trio wander towards the results together. “Bold words for the Olympic champion who’s sitting in sixth at a local competition.” Nonetheless, their banter leaves Doyoung in a much better mood. 

JUNIOR MEN - FREE SKATING, STARTING ORDERSHORT PROGRAM

1 |  Soobin CHOI | 5 | 44.27  
---|---|---|---  
2 |  Taehyun KANG | 7 | 32.07  
3 |  Yeonjun CHOI | 6 | 36.53  
4 |  Yuta NAKAMOTO | 4 | 57.65  
5 |  Dongyoung KIM | 2 | 60.11  
6 |  Sehun OH | 3 | 57.88  
7 |  Jongin KIM | 1 | 62.55  
  
www.isu.org

Since Sehun and Jongin are currently in 3rd and 1st place respectively, they’re in the second warm-up group along with Doyoung and Yuta. Jongin returns to the locker room and curls up on the bench with a blanket and his earbuds in, quietly listening to some music. Taemin and Jonghyun must have left while he was doing rotations, because the locker is empty except for him and Sehun. From outside the locker room, Jongin can very faintly hear the sounds of the audience clapping, and the booming voice of the commentator that comes on in between each skater. Jongin uncurls himself and begins to methodically tie his skates once he estimates that the second skater is halfway done with his program. He and Sehun don’t exchange many words, presumably because both of them are a little more nervous than they’re letting on. Kibum holds his gloved hand out for tissue boxes, water bottles, and skate guards when the two of them meet up with him.

“Nice and easy,” Kibum singsongs, shifting his weight from foot to foot. Jongin’s hands shake as Yeonjun leaves the ice, and the commentator announces their ten minute warm-up. Jongin looks up when the chorus of ‘Nini! Sehunnie!’ resounds through the rink as their names are called. There are his parents, right in the middle of a crowd of skater moms and dads who are also cheering for him. There’s his face, printed on a giant cloth banner that Yixing waves to and fro. Chanyeol’s whistle and Jongdae’s laugh when he lands a flawless Triple Salchow. When Jongin used to compete back then, it was just him, his mother, and his coach. No cheering squad. No friends, except for the ones he met at the competition. How had he gained so much with such a simple coaching change? Is it really that easy? 

“Nini.” Kibum calls firmly, waving him back to the stands. Jongin reaches for his water and knocks it over. Kibum picks it up quietly. “What’s wrong?” 

“I’m--” Jongin swallows hard and shrugs. “Overthinking.” 

“Come on.” Kibum’s eyes are calm and unassuming. “Get everything done, and then we’ll talk.” Jongin shakily warms up the rest of his jumps. When they get off, Jinki is standing beside Kibum, costume-clad and makeup done. The elder skater motions to Sehun without a word, and the two of them disappear inside the lobby to keep warm before Sehun skates. Kibum takes Jongin by the wrist and pulls him inside a little hallway built under the bleachers that Jongin hadn’t even noticed. It seems to connect the two rinks together; a convenient shortcut. 

“Now,” Kibum crosses his arms and leans against the wall as the door shuts behind him. “Tell me what’s wrong.” 

“I’m not used… to… doing… well.” Jongin feels tears spring into his eyes as he utters those words. “I don’t feel like I belong here.” 

“Why?” 

“I… It feels like I have expectations to live up to now.” Jongin wrings his hands together. “People are going to make fun of me if I lose to… other skaters. Before, I… I never had to worry about that because I just… sucked.” 

“You think you’re entitled to compete well just because you have a JGP assignment.” Jongin steps back as if he’s been slapped. 

“No!” 

“Everyone has expectations to live up to,” Kibum hisses. “But if you focus on what you think you’re entitled to, you’ll never fulfill what you’re capable of doing.” Jongin gapes bewilderedly through his tears at Kibum. “How many GOE’s is worrying going to get you? You only have one job, and that’s to skate your little heart out.” Kibum presses his lips together into a thin line. “Get your shit together and go cheer Sehun on. Jinki’s competing soon, and I had to get him to watch Sehun. Apologize to him later.” Kibum turns and opens the door for Jongin. “Go.” Jongin gasps for breath and wipes his tears away on the sleeve of his Team jacket as he trudges out of the hallway and back into the cold rink. Jinki is standing on the sideline, watching Sehun circle the rink. Kibum places a hand on Jinki’s shoulder and gently moves him to the side in order to take his spot. Sehun comes to a halt and grips Kibum’s hands. 

“Three breaths, Sehunnie.” Kibum watches him intently. “You good? You can do it. I just want you to try and get everything done, okay? Your practices have been really, really amazing.” Sehun nods and shakes his legs out. The bright blue velvet of his costume is still cheesy, but it’s the least of Sehun’s worries right now. “Remember to breathe during the spins and transitions.” 

“Please welcome to the ice, Oh Sehun!” 

“Go.” Kibum shoves him away and his head tilts to the side as Sehun skates into the center of the rink and takes his position. 

“Are you okay?” Jinki rubs his hands up and down Jongin’s arms. 

“S-s-sorry--” 

“No, no. Why are you sorry? It’s okay, don’t be sorry,” Jinki shuts him down immediately and wipes the last of his tears away. “Come on. You got this, Nini.” A cheer rises up from the stands as Sehun lands his first jumping pass, and Jongin numbly claps his hands together. Kibum’s words echo over and over in his head.  _ You think you’re entitled. _

“Up!” Kibum hisses, then claps loudly when Sehun lands his Triple Axel. “Atta boy!” 

“Hey. Nini.” Jinki shakes Jongin a little. “Focus.” Sehun lands his Flip, his Lutz, and then goes flying into his combination spin while Jongin desperately tries to get a grip. He only has two minutes left. Sehun’s last three jumping passes are all combinations, and they’re all situated in the second half of his program. He stumbles on the Triple Lutz combination and only pulls off a double, but his Triple Salchow-Triple Toe is absolutely flawless. Minho’s approval can be heard all the way from where Jongin and Jinki are watching. The Axel-Euler-Salchow is scratchy and tight, but Sehun has stayed on his feet for the entire program, and as soon as he flies through his step sequence and final spin, Ki-gang has risen to their feet, screaming and clapping for Sehun’s near-perfect program. 

“That’s my boy!” Kibum slams his hand down on the boards and engulfs Sehun in a hug. “Jongin, get on.” Jongin takes to the ice and shakily strokes his customary two laps, then pulls into a back scratch spin. 

“The scores for Sehun Oh, please.” Jongin can barely breathe. “His free skate score comes to 122.42, and his total score is 180.30. He is currently in first place.” The approval that erupts from the stands sends prickles of discomfort into Jongin. 

CURRENT STANDINGS

1 |  Sehun OH | 180.30  
---|---|---  
2 |  Yuta NAKAMOTO | 178.42  
3 |  Dongyoung KIM | 177.56  
4 |  Soobin CHOI | 148.58  
5 |  Yeonjun CHOI | 110.67  
  
www.isu.org

“Nini.” Kibum calls, standing at the boards again. Jongin skates over to him. “Three breaths.” Jongin heaves lungfuls of air, trying to clear his head. Kibum leans closer to Jongin. “I don’t care what’s going through your mind right now. Focus, and get your job done.” Jongin just stares at him numbly. “You have zero excuses. Go.” Kibum brushes his thumb under Jongin’s eye, slaps him on the back, and pushes him away from the boards as the announcer calls his name and the audience erupts into cheers. Jongin looks up to see that the bleachers are almost filled. Of course they would be; Junior Men’s and Senior Men’s Free Skate are the last events of the competition, and with nothing to do, everybody will be watching the up and rising skaters, as well as the big names, like Kyuhyun, Changmin, and Jinki. As Jongin takes his position, he just can’t sink into that competitive headspace that he needs to be in. He’s too busy thinking about the audience, about Kibum, about the judges. His opening Triple Lutz-Triple Toe combination is rushed, and he puts a hand down on the Toe. He can barely even hear the music over the myriad of thoughts running through his head. He lands the Triple Salchow and pulls into his Flying Sit Spin.

_ If you focus on what you think you’re entitled to, you’ll never fulfill what you’re capable of doing. _

Jongin’s hands feel so cold. He’s not used to skating without gloves on; the wind whistles through his fingers and he feels bare and exposed. Triple Flip-Euler-Triple Flip--Jongin needs this for the points--but again, he rushes the takeoff, just like Kyungsoo always reminds him not to do, and he falls hard.  _ Get up, get up, get up,  _ Jongin’s half-hazy, half-panicked competition mind gets stuck on those two words and they keep repeating themselves over and over as he goes into his Triple--no, Jongin pops it, so it’s a Double--Axel. He falls again on Triple Loop. And with the last bit of energy--Jongin doesn’t even know where it comes from, he’s so ready to just skate off the ice--he lands the Triple Axel-Double Toe at the end of his program. Then comes his step sequence, and Jongin just isn’t connected with the music at all, and then, as if it couldn’t get any worse, he stumbles on a spin at the end before finishing two seconds late. 

_ You think you’re entitled. _

Jongin breathes heavily. He barely even raises his head to look at the judges and audience as he bows. All he wants to do is get off and cry, but Kibum won’t let him. He keeps a firm hand on Jongin’s back while the skater waits miserably for his score. 

“The scores for Jongin Kim, please.” Jongin busies himself with thrusting an arm into his Team jacket. Why does he even have a Team jacket, anyways? 

“His free skate score is 121.10--” 

“What?” Jongin turns to Kibum, who looks back at him, unsurprised. 

“And total score is 183.65, which puts him in first place. Ladies and gentlemen, this concludes the Junior Men’s free skate event. The next event is Senior Men’s free skate, beginning at 7:45 pm on the East rink. We would like to thank our officials…” 

JUNIOR MEN, FINAL RESULTS

1 |  Jongin KIM | 183.65  
---|---|---  
2 |  Sehun OH | 180.30  
3 |  Yuta NAKAMOTO | 178.42  
4 |  Dongyoung KIM | 177.56  
5 |  Soobin CHOI | 148.58  
6 |  Yeonjun CHOI | 110.67  
7 |  Taehyun KANG | 89.48  
  
www.isu.org

“How?” Jongin whispers, looking at Kibum. 

“What do you mean, ‘how’? Your level of difficulty is there,” Kibum scoffs. “You attempted and cleanly rotated triple jumps, even if you fell.” 

“But I did so bad.” 

“Well, yes, Sehun beat you in the free skate section,” Kibum comments dryly. “But this is what I mean,” Kibum huffs and crosses his arms. “You have no right to be this dramatic if all you’re going to do is go out to JGP and compete like that.” And this is so unfair that Jongin can feel the tears coming back. 

“That’s not what I--” 

“Nini, do you see what I mean? It’s not like you didn’t suck out there today, although that wording is a little harsh. You’re not any different from Yeonjun, or whoever you were comparing yourself to. You’re still capable of falling and messing up and doing shitty. And you’re not any different from any other Junior skater who’s been assigned to JGP this year. Everyone has a full arsenal of Triple jumps that are ready to go. What’s going to set you apart is right here.” Kibum reaches up and taps Jongin’s temple. “You need to start taking yourself a little more seriously.”

“I don’t--” 

“Nini, you’re so good. You don’t suck at all, and you need to stop telling yourself that. Those kinds of thoughts aren’t going to get you anywhere.” Kibum walks away, pulling out his phone to text his Senior skaters as he does so, leaving Jongin standing there in his Team jacket, alone against the backdrop of an empty ice rink. 

MEN - FREE SKATING, STARTING ORDERSHORT PROGRAM

1 |  Jungkook JEON | 9 | 56.35  
---|---|---|---  
2 |  Yoongi MIN | 10 | 55.37  
3 |  Changmin SHIM | 6 | 78.48  
4 |  Taehyung KIM | 8 | 58.52  
5 |  Jimin PARK | 7 | 60.89  
6 |  Minho CHOI | 2 | 94.76  
7 |  Kyuhyun CHO | 4 | 87.46  
8 |  Jinki LEE | 5 | 87.22  
9 |  Yixing ZHANG | 3 | 88.31  
10 |  Taemin LEE | 1 | 98.38  
  
www.isu.org

It’s impossible to perpetually be in a bad mood, surrounded by all the antics of his teammates and friends going on around him. The weight of Jongin’s silver and gold medal from his Free Skate and overall placement hangs from around his neck as he leans against Jonghyun to watch Senior Men’s. Everybody had reassured Jongin that it was fine, that it was just a burner competition anyways, so Jongin just forgets about it for now in favor of watching Yixing’s massive Triple Axel that nearly sends him flying into the boards. 

“Maybe we should record a jump and send it to Baekhyun,” Jongdae suggests on the other side of Jongin. 

“Smart.” Jongin records Yixing’s next Quad Flip and sends it over to Baekhyun, who replies about three minutes later, when all the skaters have left the ice. 

Baek 

Baek 

Fuck me 

He’s so hot asdlkfjwleka 

I’m telling him u said that 

Baek 

OK :) 

Tell him glhf too 

Minho is up first in the second warm up, and Jonghyun commentates for everybody like he has been doing all day. 

“It’ll take a massive effort to follow up Changmin’s performance. The other skater was in sixth after the short program, and had to skate in the first warm-up group, but came back with a stunning free skate that has landed him in first place thus far.” 

CURRENT STANDINGS

1 |  Changmin SHIM | 277.42  
---|---|---  
2 |  Jungkook JEON | 201.36  
3 |  Yoongi MIN | 180.22  
  
www.isu.org

“Hyung, do you think anyone will manage to beat Changmin?” Jongin asks, tentatively playing the role of side-commentator. 

“Ahh, we’ll have to see. There are some strong contenders this evening, Minho being one of them. Although I agree, Jongin, 198 is a very difficult free skate score to beat, especially in the beginning of the season.” 

“Minho is skating to ‘Phantom of the Opera’ for his Free Skate. It’s a very dark and intense piece of music, but for an experienced skater like Minho, with all that charisma, he portrays the protagonist so well--oh shit,” Jongin breaks character, “down on the Quad Flip.” 

“Very surprising fall right there, Minho usually never falls on that jump,” Jonghyun laments. “Oh, no--another major mistake, pops the Quad Toe. That was supposed to be in combination with a Triple Toe, looks like he’ll have to do some rearranging.” 

“Damn, what’s up with him today?” Sehun murmurs, snuggling close to Junmyeon. The youngest skater is the happiest of them all, having performed beautifully in front of his boyfriend and family and teammates. Junmyeon touches the gold medal that Sehun earned for his free skate, and Sehun takes it off to put it around Junmyeon’s neck immediately. “Triple Axel,” Sehun commentates quietly for his boyfriend, “combination spin. Ugh, he gave so many points away already though with those two mistakes.” 

“There’s his big combination,” Jongin notes as Minho changes his Triple Lutz to a Quad Lutz-Triple Toe. “He needed that. Nice Triple Axel-Triple Toe there as well.” 

“Triple--no, Quad Loop. See, this is what comes with years of competing in the field,” Jonghyun chimes in. “Minho knows that he’s left a sizable gap for people who didn’t do as well as him in the short program to catch up on, and so now, he’s taking every chance he can get to widen that gap. A seasoned competitor knows that they can’t give up on a medal, no matter what. That’s what sets Minho apart, his charisma and competitiveness.” 

“Right,” Jongin whispers. Jonghyun’s words trigger Kibum’s little lecture.  _ You need to start taking yourself a little more seriously.  _ Loud applause awaits Minho as he finishes, looking thoroughly pissed at himself. Even though he did his best, it’s still not enough, and his score of 170.68 settles him firmly into second place with four formidable skaters left to skate. Kyuhyun, despite being fourth after the short, also fumbles the bag, and scores 176.93, which puts him in second place for the free skate, but third overall. Jongin begins feeling a little guilty when Jinki takes the ice after Kyuhyun. The older skater didn’t get a chance to collect his thoughts and warm up, between looking after Sehun, spectating Jongin, and then rushing to get his skates on… But Jongin needn’t have worried, because Jinki only steps out of one combination and completes a near-perfect program. The audience gives him and his 181.45 a standing ovation. 

CURRENT STANDINGS

1 |  Changmin SHIM | 277.42  
---|---|---  
2 |  Jinki LEE | 268.67  
3 |  Minho CHOI | 265.44  
4 |  Kyuhyun CHO | 264.39  
5 |  Jungkook JEON | 201.36  
  
www.isu.org

“When does Taemin skate?” Jongdae whines as Yixing circles the ice next. 

“After Yixing-hyung.” Jongin rolls his eyes and focuses on recording Yixing’s performance for Baekhyun to watch later. Apart from a rather hard fall on a Quad Loop, Yixing skates decently clean, save a few scratchy and awkward landings. 

“Slipped off the edge for that one, looks like,” Jonghyun mutters. “Sometimes it just happens.” 

By sheer luck of the draw, Lee Taemin is the last to skate, and Jongdae squeals over the skater’s exposed arms and royal purple outfit. 

“How can someone be so hot in a place that’s freezing,” Jongdae groans to Chanyeol, who’s stifling his laughter in the quiet rink. Jongin glares daggers at Jongdae before refocusing his attention on Taemin. Jonghyun has also gone silent out of nervousness. 

“Commentary where?” Chanyeol complains. 

“Can’t,” Jonghyun and Jongin say at the same time. “Sehun,” Jongin prompts. 

“What? Oh…” Sehun sighs and clears his throat. “Lee Taemin. 18. Insane.” Taemin’s parents burst into laughter at this description. “If he shows up on the roster, you might as well withdraw because there’s no point.” 

“Yep, that’s Taeminnie,” Jonghyun agrees. 

“Skating to soundtracks from ‘Final Fantasy VI’. Majestic and extra, just like the man himself.” 

“You two are fired from ever commentating again,” Jongdae dismisses Jonghyun and Jongin. “This is the only commentary I ever want to hear.” The music starts, and Taemin promptly begins his performance. 

“You can tell he’s in the zone because he’s always in the zone,” Sehun deadpans, sending Jongdae and Junmyeon into hysterics. There’s no emotion on Sehun’s face, but there is a glimmer of mischievousness in his eye. “Quad Salchow. Perfect, just like Jongin thinks Taemin is.” 

“What.” Jongin fumes and blushes. 

“Quad Lutz-Triple Loop up next, because again, this man is fucking insane. Lutz--landed. Loop--landed, a little scratchy, but,” Sehun just shakes his head tiredly. “Y’all, I get compared to Taemin-hyung’s extra ass every fucking day by Kibum. Someone tell hyung the rent is NOT due tomorrow.” 

“Dying,” Chanyeol gasps, clutching his chest from laughter. Jongin and Jonghyun are only half listening, completely engrossed in Taemin’s every movement. 

“Combination spin, level four because Taemin never gets anything less. Step sequence, level four for previously stated reasons. Triple Axel-Double Loop. I am so tired just from watching this,” Sehun complains while Junmyeon stifles his laughter in Sehun’s chest. “Quad Salchow… can this man let the rest of us breathe?” 

“The Salchow was underrotated,” Jongin notes. “They’ll send it to review, it was tight on the landing.” 

“Like that’s gonna be a problem when he has a whole Quad Lutz-Triple Loop in his program. Anyways, Triple Lutz, which probably just got a +5. Quad Flip-Euler-Triple Salchow--does anyone even care what he does at this point? Is anyone even listening to me? He could sit down in the middle of the ice and get a standing ovation.” 

“Triple Axel-Triple Toe--” Jongin clenches his fists until Taemin lands the last jumping pass flawlessly. “YES!” The music picks up again from the middle interlude of ‘Aerith’s Theme’, and the audience screams their approval as Taemin flies into his choreographic step sequence and two consecutive combination spins. Taemin hits his final pose--

“He’s Jesus,” Jongdae crows, imitating the position--and the crowd rises to their feet all as one. 

“And that’s a wrap!” Jonghyun declares as Taemin turns towards them and bows deeply, a giant smile lighting up his face even from the distance. 

“First?” Jongin speculates. “Wait, Jongdae, will you do some mental math for me really quickly? 14, 15, 4, 5, 12, 8…” 

“You’re going way too fast,” Jongdae complains. 

“I’m even rounding for you,” Jongin sighs, going down his mental list of elements and point values. “Uhh…. 7, 14, 12, 5, 4, 4. Okay and then… components… 9, 9, 9, 8, 8. Multiply components by two. What’s the total?”

“Why is my mental math faster than the announcer?” Jongdae hisses. “190?” 

“He’s not beating Changmin,” Jongin announces. “I overestimated because I rounded up.” 

“Nooooo,” Jongdae pouts. “I did all that mental math only for him to not win?” 

“Well, Changmin slayed,” Sehun points out. “He skated like… mid-year competition well. Nobody skates that well at the beginning of the season except for him.” 

“Taemin Lee’s total free skate score,” the announcer comes on, and Jongin tenses up. “187.02.” 

“Told you,” Jongin deadpans, while Chanyeol just looks impressed that Jongin calculated the total so closely to the actual score. 

“His total score is 285.40, which puts him in first place.” 

MEN, FINAL RESULTS

1 |  Taemin LEE | 285.40  
---|---|---  
2 |  Changmin SHIM | 277.42  
3 |  Jinki LEE | 268.67  
4 |  Yixing ZHANG | 267.25  
5 |  Minho CHOI | 265.44  
6 |  Kyuhyun CHO | 264.39  
7 |  Jungkook JEON | 201.36  
8 |  Jimin PARK | 195.78  
9 |  Taehyung KIM | 182.66  
10 |  Yoongi MIN | 180.22  
  
www.isu.org

“Yeah, so he wins the whole event, but not the free skate,” Jongin explains to a confused Jongdae. “Just like Sehun won the free skate, but I won the whole event.” 

“Huh. You guys are weird.” Jongdae sighs and wraps the blanket around himself. “Anyways, that was fun.” 

“Yep. I’m gonna go see Taemin.” Jongin clamors down from the metal benches with Jonghyun. 

“What was that?” Changmin is teasing Kyuhyun and Minho, who are both stony-faced about their less-than-optimal performances that night. “Something about me slacking? Who’s in sixth place now, huh? Who’s in fifth? And who is in second, may I ask?” 

“We’ll meet again at Grand Prix,” Minho promises with narrowed eyes. “It’s just a local competition.” 

“Uhhh huhhhh. So shouldn’t you do better, because there’s no pressure?” 

“On God, Shim Changmin--” 

“Taemin-ah, so proud of you,” Jonghyun draws the younger skater into a hug while Jongin stands awkwardly to the side, avoiding eye contact with Kibum. 

“Thank you, hyungie.” Taemin is still breathing hard, but he’s wearing that radiant smile on his face nonetheless. “I did good!” 

“You did,” Jonghyun coos, patting his cheek affectionately. “You did amazing.” 

“Nini?” Taemin asks, looking around. “Didn’t he come down with you?” 

“I’m right here.” Jongin smiles as Taemin turns around. 

“Well, look at you,” Taemin teases, picking up the two medals around Jongin’s neck so that they clink together. 

“You got the same medals,” Jongin rolls his eyes and embraces Taemin. “And you deserved them.”  _ Unlike me.  _

“Nini, I didn’t get a chance to tell you after you skated because I had to go warm-up,” Taemin pulls away a little. “You skated well.” Jongin closes his eyes and shakes his head a little in disagreement. “No, you did.” 

_ “You _ skated well, Taemin-ah,” Jongin counters. “Really well.” 

“Thank you, Nini. Come with me to the locker room?” Taemin asks, beginning to walk that way. Jongin follows. 

“Hey, you two--” Kibum stops them, and Jongin hides slightly behind Taemin. “The parents just texted me, they reserved a table at the BBQ place that I just sent in the group chat. Be there at 10, okay?” 

“Okay,” Taemin agrees. Jongin nods mutely. 

“Nini, do you still have your short program medal with you?” Jinki inquires. Jongin digs around in his bag for a minute, then fishes it out. “Great. You have to wear it into the restaurant.” 

“Why?” Jongin whines. “That’s so embarrassing, everyone’s gonna be looking at us…” 

“That’s the point,” Minho grins. “It’s a tradition we have. You gotta wear whatever medals you earned to the group dinner.” 

“Noooo,” Jongin moans, but he still slips the medal on over his neck. It clinks with his newest two. 

“Ooh, Nini’s stacked,” Taemin teases, even though he has the exact same number of medals resting on his own chest. 

“You’re one to talk,” Jongin nods towards Taemin’s winnings, but the other skater just smiles and places his skates into his bag. 

“The protocols are up,” Sehun announces, thumbing through the competition’s official website and clicking on the details for the Men’s Free Skate, which gives him a breakdown of the GOE’s and program component points awarded to each skater. 

“Lemme see,” Minho requests, still wiping his blades down with a towel, but walking over to where Sehun is seated on the locker room bench. “Oh, Taeminnie!” 

“What?” Taemin looks up. 

“They gave you the Lutz-Loop. Under-rotation on Quad Salchow though. And on your Quad Flip.” 

“Flip--like the one in the sequence?” Taemin inquires, and at Minho’s confirmation, he sighs in exasperation. “I think I need to change the angle at which I choreographed that. I definitely landed that clean.” 

“I can’t review jumps, but it looked clean from our vantage point,” Sehun murmurs. “Holy shit, why is your program component score so high?” 

“People underestimate the amount that good program components will contribute to a skater’s overall score,” Minho raises an eyebrow. “That’s what I’ve been telling you this whole time. Forget about the Quads, seriously. Hanyu wins over Nathan Chen sometimes, even though he only does four Quads while Chen does five, just because his skating skills are so good.”

“Well, if you fall on Quads, your program components go down as well,” Jinki offers rather sensibly. “Because you lose out on transition points.” 

“Huh.” Sehun keeps scrolling. “I beat Yoongi in program components even though he’s in Senior.” 

“‘Course you did. You skated clean, for one. And your program as a whole is just so much stronger. Did you watch the entire Senior event?” Minho looks to Sehun and Jongin. Both of them nod. “Kay, well, did you notice how, even with 30 seconds less time, and no Quads at all, both of your scores pretty much caught up with Yoongi and Taehyung’s? I  _ keep  _ telling you Quads aren’t important. If you just scale up your scores from today to what they would be if you competed in Senior, you’d probably end up somewhere in the 150’s, ahead of all of them.” 

“Taehyung tried a Quad.” Sehun states. 

“He tried two,” Jongin murmurs from the corner, where he’s curled up in a ball. “Sal and Toe.” 

“Did he get credit?” Minho asks, leaning over Sehun’s shoulder to peer at the protocol. “Nope, he didn’t. In fact, they ended up hurting his score, because they’re downgraded to Triples. He gets -5 GOEs for the jumps, and on top of that, he gets the automatic 1.50 deduction for falling twice. Bet he doesn’t land them in practice either. I rest my case.” He pulls at Sehun’s ear playfully. “You’re fine without Quads, Sehunnie. I told you. You’re not even allowed to do them until you move up to Senior, so you have, what, two years left to solidify them?” 

“Ow,” Sehun complains out of habit, but he’s smiling. 

Jongin sighs while everyone else jokes and laughs together. He pulls his phone out of his pocket to check the time. 9:00. Truth be told, he just wants to go home and have a good cry. Jongdae and Chanyeol already left, declining the offer to dinner, and Jongin would have as well if it weren’t for the fact that he’s expected to be there. He sighs and gets up. Nobody notices as the locker room door closes behind him. 

“There you are,” a soft, familiar voice reaches Jongin’s ears, and he reluctantly raises his head from his arms. Taemin is walking towards Jongin, who is curled up in a ball in the furthest corner of the upstairs balcony that leads to the bleachers. His position is half-hidden from anyone because of a concrete pillar in front of him, and there’s nobody left at the rink except for a few skaters in the locker rooms anyways. “What’s wrong?” Taemin kneels in front of Jongin, whose eyes and nose are red from crying and the cold. Jongin just looks away, ashamed for Taemin to see him this vulnerable and weak. He must look so stupid, crying because of his performance at a local competition. 

“Can I hug you?” Taemin asks, and when Jongin leans towards him, Taemin shyly drapes his arms around Jongin’s huddled figure. Jongin sniffles and rummages in his pocket for the spare tissues that he stashed in there. “Nini, you can tell me,” Taemin reassures him. “I got worried when you didn’t come back after you left.” And normally, Jongin would be happy about that, but right now, he’s too mired down in the depths of self-pity to care much. 

“It’s stupid,” Jongin whispers. 

“No, it’s not. Are you upset because you did badly? But you didn’t, Nini. You proved that everything in your program is within your ability. That’s all you needed to accomplish today.” 

“It’s not that.” Jongin heaves a shuddery sigh. 

“Then what’s wrong?” Taemin sits down next to Jongin and makes himself a little more comfortable. “It’s just us two,” Taemin adds quietly, looking out at the empty ice rink. “Everyone else is still in the locker room.” So Jongin recounts what happened right before he skated. 

“I didn’t mean it like I was entitled to anything,” Jongin sniffs miserably. “I know how it feels to always do shitty.” 

“You don’t have to explain yourself to me,” Taemin murmurs. 

“And I’m just mad at myself because I let it affect my performance. I should have just placed fourth.” 

“Calculate your score, Nini,” Taemin insists gently. “Even with all the falls. The judges didn’t overscore you, or place you in any favor. Your technical score is there. You have the jumps. That’s why you placed first.” 

“B-but the general public isn’t going to understand why I placed first when I fell twice and fucked up a spin--” 

“There you go again, worrying about expectations,” Taemin tells him firmly. “Nini, does it matter, if you know you won fair and square?” 

“Kind of,” Jongin says miserably. 

“Do you think I deserved silver instead of Hanyu?” Taemin asks suddenly. “At Worlds this year?” Jongin gapes at him. “Eliminate biases, Nini. Tell me honestly if you believe I deserved to win or not.” Jongin thinks back to Worlds. Hanyu had been injured. He had fumbled that one jump. Taemin had rearranged his program… 

“Yeah. Your score was higher no matter what.” 

“‘Kay. Try telling that to Hanyu’s fans.” Taemin laughs with no real humor to his voice. 

“No thanks.” Jongin cringes at just the thought. 

“Exactly.” Taemin tugs Jongin to lean against his shoulder. “The thing you have to realize is that there are lots of people who will try and dictate what they believe should happen, when they’ve never been in that position before. They don’t understand how difficult it is to wear one of these.” Taemin tugs at the sleeve of Jongin’s team jacket. And with a jolt, Jongin realizes that he didn’t really know what it meant either, just a few months ago. Taemin had mentioned it, hadn’t he?  _ It weighs you down.  _ Jongin had only nodded and waved it off. And now, he’s feeling that same pressure to do well. 

“Also--don’t let Kibum hear me say this,” Taemin warns. “But there is a little bit of entitlement involved. Don’t think for a second that politics doesn’t play into how we place. You saw it for yourself at Nationals, when they decided not to send Minho-hyung to Worlds. But that’s only something that we would know, just because we’re… the Federation’s pawns. Well. Maybe you don’t really understand that yet. But you weren’t completely wrong when you said people would make fun of you if you lost to, say, Yeonjun or Taehyun.” 

“Kibum has to know this as well, right?” Jongin wonders. 

“Yes. But we’re not supposed to say that out loud, cause figure skating is totally impartial.” Taemin laughs and tips his head against Jongin’s. “But he was right. It’s important to just focus on your abilities and performance, without worrying about something so extraneous as politics.” 

“I know.” Jongin sighs. “I’ll remember that from now on.” 

“Because if you slack off and become entitled, you won’t survive, even if the Federation loves you.” 

“Of course,” Jongin agrees. He wipes away the last of his tears. “Thank you, Taem.” 

“Yeah.” Taemin doesn’t move from their position, pressed close together, sitting side by side with their backs against the wall. Jongin closes his eyes and breathes in the scent of fresh ice and lavender. 

“I haven’t seen my parents in a long time,” Taemin says quietly, and Jongin gets the feeling that Taemin just wants to talk about anything now. Maybe he’s also exhausted from the constant noise, the stress of competing, and the hectic schedule. “My mom used to sit in on every practice.” 

“Mine, too. We were talking about it this afternoon, actually.” 

“She used to get up at four in the morning to accompany me to practice,” Taemin confides. “Before I had to go to school and she had work. And then I would go to school, then go back to the rink until it was dark. We left the house before the sun rose, and came back after it set.” 

“My dad brought in the income, and my mom and I moved out to this 2-star extended stay motel to train with my jump coach,” Jongin supplies. “We only came back every weekend or so.” 

“Ah, so you were one of those skaters.” 

“Yep. I was a traveler.” 

“My family couldn’t afford that,” Taemin says quietly. 

“Oh.” Jongin fumbles with his words. “I--you don’t… have to tell me if you don’t want to.” 

“No, it’s okay.” Taemin hums for a second. “Well, skating is an expensive sport.” 

“Oh yeah. For sure.” 

“So there were some costs that couldn’t be cut down no matter what. Equipment, you know. Skates, blade sharpenings, ice time, competition fees…” 

“Coaching fees,” Jongin adds. 

“Yeah. But I only took two lessons a week.” 

“Two?!” Jongin’s voice rises in surprise, and it echoes around the empty arena.

“It was…” Taemin’s lips form a thin line. “Frustrating. Because we couldn’t afford that much ice time in the first place. I trained mostly on public sessions or free skate sessions that weren’t separated by level--you know, because it’s cheaper… ice time was ice time, no matter what kind it was.” 

“Uhhfff.” Jongin cringes at the idea of training new jumps on crowded public sessions, with rough, snow-covered ice and the incessant, clumsy circling of the general public. “Ughh.” 

“It didn’t matter to me. As long as I could skate.” Taemin shrugs slightly, jostling Jongin’s head against his shoulder. “I skated until the Zamboni came out at the end of the session. And then I skated until I got kicked off.” 

“You still do that,” Jongin murmurs. 

“Just maximizing my time.” Taemin huffs out a puff of air in amusement. “And old habits. But yeah. Not enough practice time, and not enough instruction.” 

“Holy shit.” Jongin doesn’t even realize the words slip out of his mouth before it happens. 

“Huh?” Taemin asks, but Jongin’s mind is already whirling in disbelief. 

“Taem, you’re  _ so  _ talented,” Jongin murmurs in awe. “You’re just. Talented. I don’t even… wow. Wow,” Jongin repeats, because he’s still processing just how  _ insanely  _ gifted and determined Taemin would have to be to overcome his humble beginning and claw his way to the top of the figure skating world. “But how did you learn new jumps? And monitor your technique?” Jongin inquires. His curiosity has peaked. 

“Jjong-hyung.” Taemin’s answer is simple. “He learned skating theory.” 

“Because your mother had to work?” Jongin asks. 

“Yes. Hyung was the one that acted as a mother-coach for me. That’s also partly why my mother trusted him to take care of me when I switched to Kibum,” Taemin explains. 

“Ahh.” Jongin nods slowly. “Yeah… My mother learned all the technique over time as well. When I was practicing, we used to have a system of communication through the glass--” 

“We do, too!” Taemin laughs. “But I dropped it as I got older, even though hyung still makes a habit out of watching my practices.” 

“What does yours look like?” Jongin asks suddenly, lifting his head up to look at Taemin. 

“Does this make any sense to you?” Taemin holds one fist up. One hand shifts to hold up three fingers. Then both hands move together to make a triangle, followed by an ‘okay’ sign. 

“Oh, God.” Jongin grimaces while Taemin waits interestedly for his answer. “Triple… Axel. Clean.” 

“You got it!” Taemin laughs delightedly. 

“Really?” Jongin claps in excitement. “For Axel, I just imitated the forward takeoff. And we didn’t indicate clean jumps, just under-rotations or downgrades.” 

“That’s so cute, how we developed our own sign languages,” Taemin coos. “I’m pretty sure hyung and I could have a whole conversation in just sign language now.” 

“Same. My mom used it to complain about the other rink mothers,” Jongin laughs. “She’s a whole character. I owe so much to her.” 

“Me, too. If it weren’t for my mother, there’s no way I would be where I am.” Taemin sighs and fiddles with the zipper of his jacket. “She… for seven years, she basically had no life. I was her entire life. Just me and my skating, that’s all she cared about and worked for.”

“Same here.” Jongin sighs and closes his eyes. “All she ever wanted wasn’t even for me to make it here or whatever. She just saw how much I loved skating, and wanted to make me happy.” 

“Yes. Part of that is just continuing to improve.” 

“Yeah,” Jongin agrees. “Competing makes me happy. Wearing this--” Jongin plucks at the sleeve of his jacket, “makes me so happy.” 

“Me, too. My parents understood that, and they did everything in their power to let me chase my goals,” Taemin says softly. “Everyone always says it’s good to have autonomy, and it is, but a parent’s support is incomparable. Especially when I was younger.” 

“I totally agree. I think autonomy comes later… like when I moved away to train here. With Kibum.” 

“Nini, I was so scared when I moved.” Taemin opens his eyes and stares out at the ice rink. “I was only 14.”

“You told me before,” Jongin says softly. “I can’t even imagine it.” 

“Yeah. Actually, I was only able to move because I received a sponsorship.” 

“You…?” Jongin looks at Taemin, startled. “You got funding for your training?” 

“Yes. I got scouted at Intermediate Nationals when I was really young. They were banking on my later success… so I ended up using that money to move and start working with Kibum.” 

“With Jonghyun-hyung?” 

“He actually decided to move with me because my parents still had to work,” Taemin explains. “It was a really big sacrifice on his part. I owe him so much.”

“Ohhh.” Jongin huffs out a breath that he didn’t even know he had been holding. “That’s insane, actually. I don’t think I’ve ever met anybody who has received a sponsorship to train.” 

“I know. Me neither. But without it, I definitely wouldn’t be here today.” Taemin motions to the two of them, sitting against the wall. 

“But that’s also so much pressure to be under,” Jongin murmurs. “You were basically forced to succeed.” 

“Yes. Yeah. I had no other choice but to go up,” Taemin nods in agreement. “There was literally no Plan B once I took up the offer. We would’ve gone into so much debt if I hadn’t made it. I just remember waking up everyday and the first thing on my mind would be skating. That’s all I ever did, train and study and sleep. At least until I made Nationals in… Novice. So three years ago. Because that’s when I started earning back what I used, and also when they start looking at skaters for Internationals.”

“Taem…” Jongin falters, at a loss for words. He looks over at the other skater, knees pulled up to his chest in an imitation of Jongin’s position. Even though his breakthrough story is powerful and moving, Taemin looks so small and fragile sitting next to Jongin. If it weren’t for the fact that Jongin sees the way Taemin’s eyes glaze over when he becomes focused, or that he knows Taemin doesn’t even stop for water breaks on most practices, Jongin would’ve never guessed that such a delicate, graceful person as Taemin were so capable of handling such insurmountable pressure. “You’re so strong.” Jongin settles on those three words, even though he could have spent all evening sitting with Taemin and telling the elder how much he admired him for his strength, his bravery, his drive. Jongin wants to pull Taemin into his arms, card his fingers through soft locks of hair, and tell him it’s okay to rest, to relax. That he’s done so, so well for these past few years, and he’ll only keep getting better. Instead, Jongin lets his head drop onto Taemin’s shoulder gently, so that he’s only keeping contact with the elder instead of making Taemin carry his weight. 

“When my mom saw me today, she…” Taemin stops and heaves a shuddery breath. “She said that… the way I practiced had changed.” 

“How so?” Jongin inquires softly. In a bout of bravery, he reaches out for Taemin’s hand, resting on his thigh. Taemin takes it instantly and intertwines their fingers together. 

“She said I always used to be so rushed… I used to skate like every practice was my last time I’d be allowed on the ice. And she said now, I skate like. Like I own the rink.” Taemin brings his other hand up to his eyes and brushes his tears away lightly. “She said I made it.” 

“You did make it, Taeminnie.” Jongin shifts slightly to wrap his arms around Taemin’s slender, graceful waist. Strangely, his heart doesn’t beat faster or anything. He just feels… peaceful. 

“You’ll make it, too,” Taemin whispers. “You have to. What’s your goal, Jongin-ah?” Jongin considers this for a minute. What does he want? 

“I want to go to the Grand Prix Final. Senior division.” 

“Do you do this every time?” Jongin’s mother inquires at large to the group of parents filling up half of the table at the barbecue restaurant. To her left, Minho’s mother takes the question. 

“It’s hard to get the entire group together for international competitions, but this,” she indicates the circle that they’re sitting in, “is a tradition of ours.” 

“Our boys enjoy it a lot as well,” Jinki’s mother pitches in. “When Jinki was little, he used to look forward to the restaurant outing more than competing.” This earns a laugh from Kibum, who is sitting across from her at the table, scrolling through his phone to examine the protocols. 

“Started small,” Kibum murmurs. “Used to just be Minho and Jinki.” 

“Back then it was totally different,” Minho’s mother tells the table at large. “The tradition started during their first year in Juvenile.” 

“Ah!” Kibum looks up. “I remember now.” 

“Yes, the boys had just switched to the IJS system of scoring with GOEs,” Minho’s mother nods. “And Kibum-coachnim offered them a bet.” 

“Told them whoever gets +3’s on a spin or jump in a competition would get ice cream,” Kibum supplies. 

“The boys loved that,” Minho’s mother smiles. “Minho was always so competitive, even when he was young.” 

“They didn’t do it that year, did they?” Jinki’s mother asks. “But it was really just to get them excited to compete.” 

“Yes. I never expected either of them to get +3’s for their first year in Juvenile.” Kibum cracks a smile. “It was all in good fun, so I just ended up taking them out to dinner afterwards.” 

“I know Jinki enjoyed it a lot because that was pretty much the only time he got to hang out with Minho outside of skating,” Jinki’s mother comments. “His schedule included training every day. School, skating, and sleep. That’s all Jinki would do.” 

“You know, it was really difficult,” Minho’s mother sighs. “Between the three of us--” she motions to Kibum, Jinki’s mother, and then herself, “--we just wanted the best for the boys. But there were a few years along the road where it was… discouraging.” 

“Understatement.” Kibum’s mouth twists to the side as he recalls the memory. “It wasn’t just you. I was wondering if we’d be able to pull it off and get one of them to the top at all.” 

“I remember asking Jinki if he really wanted to continue,” Jinki’s mother says softly. “Because it just didn’t seem like we were getting anywhere. And he said, ‘just one more year, mom. Give me one more year.’” 

“I never heard about this,” Kibum remarks. 

“Well, we made it that year. That was the year those two went to Nationals,” Jinki’s mother explains. 

“I see.” 

“Was that the year we joined?” Sehun’s mother inquires. “I remember Sehun was watching TV, and asked me to sign him up for lessons.” 

“Yes, yes. We were so excited to have another member on the team,” Minho’s mother nods. “I remember the boys were ecstatic.” 

“Oh, my gosh.” Kibum sighs. “I remember when Jinki slacked off on practices in order to play with Sehun. He swung him around in those circles…” 

“I’ve never seen Minho slack off, but he did to teach Sehun,” Minho’s mother laughs. 

“Do you know how confusing that was sometimes? I’d get on the ice that morning and be like, ‘okay Sehunnie, come here, let’s learn stroking.’” Kibum makes his voice sweet and cute, as if he really is talking to a toddler. “Then Minho would come over and be like, ‘oh, I taught him that yesterday after you left.’” 

“They really all grew up together,” Sehun’s mother smiles fondly. “I remember sitting in the lobby and listening while you two talked and talked about new skates, and jump technique, and seemed to know everything that was going on on the ice. And all I cared about was whether Sehun was standing up or sitting down.” 

“Everybody gets there in the end,” Minho’s mother laughs. “It’s overwhelming for everyone at the start.” 

“I second that,” Jonghyun grumbles. “There was so much to learn.” 

“It was more difficult for you, because you didn’t have someone you could talk to, right?” Jinki’s mother looks over to Jonghyun, who nods. 

“Yeah. Taeminnie and I basically learned together. And it was very confusing at times, because both of us had no idea if we were doing things right or wrong… there was just no basis of comparison.” 

“Oh, I could never.” Sehun’s mother shakes her head. “Having the pre-existing team was so helpful for Sehun and myself. What you two did is so impressive.” From around the table comes a murmur of agreement. 

“It got infinitely better when we switched to Kibum,” Jonghyun explains. “Because Taemin was getting the training he needed, and I had references.” 

“It was also better when we moved, because then I could actually provide you guys with enough ice time, and a dance studio, and a gym,” Kibum supplies. “Once Minho and Jinki took off, I realized just how much more serious training had to be. There was no way I was going to waste another seven years of my life getting Taem and Sehun to the top.”

“It was a really difficult decision to move,” Taemin’s mother grimaces. “Not just financially, but it was just… at the time, success wasn’t guaranteed, you know? But then again, it’s never guaranteed… I’m so glad we took the gamble.” 

“I think that’s the moment when I really realized that we’re in for the long haul,” Jinki’s mother nods. “Jinki was so serious and so eager about everything. And it just hit me that… we were talking about a completely different level of figure skating from when we first started.” 

“I think that’s when we all really became a team,” Minho’s mother says. “Since they moved out, we had to come up with new ways to support the boys with their goals. And it was just such a huge decision that everybody had to make.” She turns to Jongin’s mother, who has been listening interestedly for the whole time. “It must have been similar for you, too, when Jongin moved?” 

“Oh, yes. Similar situation, similar thought process,” Jongin’s mother nods slowly. “I believe Jongin was thinking the same thing as Jinki, actually. ‘Just one more year.’ He was so burnt out and discouraged. Moving away from home and in with his college friends for training was really his final straw.” 

“It is insane how far one coaching change can get you,” Jonghyun pitches in. “Seriously. Coaches and their techniques matter a lot in figure skating.” 

“It’s not just that,” Kibum argues. “It’s the environment. We have a group of hard-working, dedicated skaters that are super close and very driven. You’d be surprised how encouraging that peer pressure can be.” 

“I’m glad Sehun had someone to look up to,” Sehun’s mother smiles. “Every day, whenever he got off, I would ask him how practice was. And all he talked about…” 

“Was Minho and Jinki.” Junmyeon joins in the conversation. “We were 2 minutes into our first conversation, and Sehun was telling me how Minho said he wanted to compete against Sehun one day.” 

“Yes, that’s all I would hear. How Minho landed his Triple-Triple, or that Jinki was trying to learn a death spiral,” Sehun’s mother chuckles. “I didn’t even get to hear about how his own practice was.” 

“Jongin calls me and tells me about how all his workouts are partnered, and how he always has teammates to rely on and learn from now,” Jongin’s mother comments. “That’s totally new from what we’re usually used to. Aside from the coach, it really used to be just him and I for training and competitions.” 

“That used to be Taeminnie as well, before we switched,” Taemin’s mother agrees. “It’s a really great training environment.” 

“Especially since skating is a solo sport in and of itself,” Jonghyun pipes up. “Taeminnie gets lonely easily. Having everybody around all the time is really good.” 

“I think, for Sehun, it helps that everyone is always so focused,” Sehun’s mother supplies. “You have that factor of friendly competition for every practice.” 

“Minho makes it borderline scary,” Kibum says, not looking up from his phone. 

“Even better,” Sehun’s mother declares, which garners a laugh from around the table. 

“Everyone’s really focused on their own training, that’s why it works.” Kibum looks up from his phone. “I want them to learn from each other. I encourage the older ones--” here, Kibum points to Minho and Jinki’s parents, “to mentor the younger ones. Especially since we’re more elite per say, so there’s a lot of things that I can’t necessarily teach… press conferences and publicity, for example.” 

“Oh, those are difficult for Jongin.”

“Yeah,” Kibum nods in Jongin’s mothers’ direction, “Because they’re not directly related to the sport. Jinki and everyone else can act as an example for him to follow.” 

“You should tell Jongin to ask Jonghyun,” Taemin’s mother speaks directly to Jongin’s mother. “Taeminnie learned a lot from him in terms of public speaking.” 

“Oh, really?” Jongin’s mother leans across to make eye contact with Jonghyun, who drops his head modestly. 

“I just help out wherever.” 

“Nonsense. Taemin wouldn’t be where he is without your help,” Taemin’s mother scolds him affectionately. 

“That’s giving me way too much credit,” Jonghyun protests, but if the look that Taemin’s mother is giving him didn’t successfully shut him down, the arrival of Jinki, Minho, and Sehun does. “Heyo.” 

“Over here.” Junmyeon, who is seated next to Sehun’s mother, waves Sehun over and offers a slight squeeze of Sehun’s fingers as a greeting. 

“Wear these for me,” Sehun grumbles, attempting to put all three medals of his over Junmyeon’s head, but Minho points a threatening finger at him. 

“Winner has to suffer.” 

“Exactly,” Junmyeon beams at his boyfriend when he sits down and the medals clink loudly. 

“Where’s everyone else?” Kibum looks up.

“They’re coming,” Jinki says. “Taem ran off somewhere.” 

“He’s probably with Jongin,” Sehun offers. 

“Yixing said he’d be here in a second,” Minho supplies as he sits down next to Jinki, who’s next to Kibum. 

“Alone?” Jinki’s mother is quick to be concerned. 

“He said he wanted to make a call really quickly,” Jinki explains. “Ah, speak of the devil.” The clanking of medals announces his arrival before Yixing actually shows up. 

“Hi,” he murmurs, bowing a little to everyone around the table before he takes a seat on Kibum’s right. 

“Yixing, dear, how have you been?” Jinki’s mother offers a maternal smile. 

“I am good,” is Yixing’s short reply. One of his hands comes up to fiddle with the bronze medal from his short program. 

“Sehun tells me your Korean is getting better,” Sehun’s mother joins in. 

“Oh, really?” Yixing cracks a shy smile. “Is okay, I guess. Thank you.” 

“Xing.” It’s Jonghyun; Yixing turns to him. “How’s training going?” 

“Umm…” Yixing bites his lip. He always becomes more hesitant with his words in front of a larger group of people, even if he’s known everyone at the table for years. “Busy. Yes, really busy. But… like… you know China Nationals at start of season?” 

“Yeah, they’re in September, aren’t they?” Jonghyun asks, and Yixing nods. 

“Yes, so I excited to go… to go back.” 

“Aw! That’s good,” Jonghyun smiles. “And you skated really well yesterday and today, Xing.” 

“You did!” Minho’s mother joins in. “It’s only been a year since we last got together, but you’ve improved so much, Yixing.” 

“Yes, it almost felt like we were watching completely new skaters,” Taemin’s mother nods. “No exaggeration there.” 

“Ah.” Yixing turns very faintly pink and shows a stifled, but pleased smile. “Thank you.” 

“What’d we miss?” A cheerful voice calls out above the murmurs of conversations between parents, coach, and skaters, and everyone turns to see Taemin and Jongin walking towards the table. The latter is holding his trio of medals in his hand so that they don’t make any noise when he walks. 

“You’re late,” Sehun informs Jongin with every evil intent possible.

“Fashionably late,” is Jongin’s unbothered reply, taking a seat between him and Yixing while Taemin places himself next to Jonghyun and Minho. “Hi, mom.” Jongin waves. “Did you already order?” 

“We took the liberty of ordering,” Jinki’s mother supplies. “Everyone’s covered, don’t worry.” 

“Sweet, thanks.” Jongin turns to Yixing. “Hyung, will you learn Paso Doble with me?” 

“Pa--sorry?” 

“The ice dance pattern.” Jongin begins tracing it out on a napkin and Yixing leans over to observe interestedly. Sehun interlaces his fingers with Junmyeon under the table and, at the elder’s request, pulls up his protocol on his phone and begins explaining what each section means. Jinki immerses himself in Kibum and the parents’ conversation about their plans for the rest of the competitive season, while Taemin laughs helplessly, having been caught in the middle of an intense game of rock-paper-scissors between Minho and Jonghyun. Shortly thereafter, the conversation turns towards whose program everyone likes best this year, regardless of how well it was performed today. 

“I like Taemin’s,” Jongin says immediately. “His short program.” Yixing stifles a laugh behind the back of his hand. 

“Taemin-hyung’s is really, really cool,” Sehun agrees. “It’s the costume that does it for me.” 

“Yes, I meant to bring that up as well,” Jongin’s mother nods and looks to Kibum appreciatively. “Your designs are so impressive.” 

“Thank you, thank you. The costume is nothing without the performance, though.” Kibum inclines his head slightly. “And Nini, you like your costumes this year, don’t you?” 

“Huh?” Jongin flinches when Kibum directly addresses him. “Yeah, I--they’re really pretty, Coach-nim.” His voice is tentative, unsure. 

“I always try to design something that makes my skaters want to skate,” Kibum explains. “It makes competing that much more special, because they look forward to dressing up.” 

“I like my short, but not my free,” Sehun mutters. “The blue is just not it.”

“But you skated your free so well today.” Junmyeon gives him a warm smile. “I think you’re amazing, no matter what you wear.” 

“Even if I wear nothing?” Sehun drops his voice.

“Sweetheart, not now.” Junmyeon sighs wearily while Sehun smirks. 

“I’m hungry,” Taemin whines to Jonghyun, who stops glaring daggers at Minho for just a minute. 

“Everything should be out soon, Taeminnie. Did you even eat before you competed?” Taemin refuses to answer that one, instead humming and glancing down at his phone. Jonghyun sighs and exchanges a look with Taemin’s mother, but before either of them can say anything, there’s a ruckus from Sehun and Jongin’s side of the table. 

“It’s so embarrassing,” Sehun complains. “Everyone else has normal skating club names. Why are we ‘Luv Little Freaks Skating?’”

“I must say, it’s quite accurate if you change ‘freaks’ to ‘brats’,” Kibum mutters. Sehun is undeterred.

“That’s the only part I hate about competing. Whenever they announce our names, I cringe at the club.” 

“Hurry up and go to an International, then, so they’ll only announce your country,” Minho counters. “But I agree. ‘Luv Little Freaks’ is kind of ridiculous, isn’t it?” He turns to Jinki, who shrugs. 

“I don’t care.” 

“Same,” Yixing says quietly, but the side of his mouth quirks upwards in mischievousness. 

“Of course you don’t care, you’re not part of LLF, you just train with us,” Sehun snorts. “Changsha FSC is perfectly normal.” Yixing bursts into laughter. 

“I think it funny.” 

“Well, I think it’s cute,” Jongin smiles.

“What.” Sehun fixes him with a very judgmental look. 

“It’s unconventional. I like it.”

“Taemin-hyung?” Sehun looks towards Taemin. 

“Don’t care,” Taemin smiles. “We don’t have to hear it that much anyways.” 

“Thank God,” Minho mutters, then straightens up as all the food arrives. 

“I wish I could eat freely,” Jongin whines, curating his plate of kimchi and stealing some of the side dishes while he’s at it. 

“Calories are just Kibum’s way of preventing us from eating good food,” Sehun tells him, watching as Jonghyun and Jinki grill the meat. 

“Can we just say calories don’t count because we competed today?” Jongin asks, looking over at his coach. Kibum shrugs and raises his hands in a gesture of indifference. 

“That’s all on you, dear. Also you all know you have the day off tomorrow, right?” 

“Huh?” Yixing looks up in surprise. 

“I always give you the day off after competitions, why are you so surprised?” 

“Forgot,” Yixing murmurs. “That is good.” 

“Help yourselves,” Jinki prompts. “Mom, give me your plate.” Everyone waits until the parents have food or have started eating before filling their plates as well. The conversation lulls a bit while everyone eats; out of the corner of his eye, Jongin watches Taemin slowly eat his significantly smaller portion of meat on his plate, and makes a mental note to ask the elder if he wants to go out for lunch tomorrow since they have the day off anyways. And maybe Jongin just wants to hang out. 

“Can we do something tomorrow?” Sehun asks Junmyeon in between his mouthfuls of food. 

“‘Course. I’m looking forward to sleeping in,” Junmyeon admits. 

“Sameeeee.” Sehun smiles at the prospect of a day off. Ever since competition season kicked off, there hasn’t been any time to kick back and relax. Even if it’s just one day, the break allows everyone to reset and breathe before getting ready for all the major Internationals. “Hyung, what are you planning on doing?” Four heads turn towards him. “Minho-hyung.” 

“Changmin and Kyuhyun are staying an extra day before they head home, so Jinks and I are planning on hanging out with them.” 

“Chaos.” Kibum sighs.

“Chaos, yes. We might break into the rink and do a 2AM session like last time,” Minho wiggles his eyebrows. Sehun just looks intrigued. 

“Xing-hyung, do you have any plans--” Jongin starts to say ‘with Baekhyun’, but then realizes Yixing might not want that with a full table of parents. “Do you have any plans tonight?” The Chinese skater shakes his head slightly. “Then do you want to come over afterwards?” Jongin offers. “Movie? Fruit chips? Relationship interview?” 

“Uh, last one no…” Yixing looks up from his food. 

“Just movies and fruit chips then,” Jongin promises. “If it gets late, you can sleep over, no problem.” 

“Is that okay with everyone?” Yixing asks. 

“Why do you have to ask that every time like we’re strangers?” Jongin complains. “You’re so welcome every time.” 

“I just checking. Okay, then. Thank you.” Yixing definitely looks more happy at the prospect of spending the rest of the evening with friends instead of going home alone. 

“I hope Dae and Yeol won’t be loud. I just want a quiet movie night,” Jongin sighs. “I’m so tired…” 

“You should definitely get some rest,” Jongin’s mother tells him from across the table. “You’re looking so skinny and pale these days.” 

“Nah, I’m okay. I get rest. That’s just from training everyday,” Jongin reassures his mother. 

“You guys all skated so well today,” Minho’s mother says. “We all enjoyed watching you.” 

“We’ll make this season amazing,” Minho promises his mother. “Thank you for coming, mom.” 

“I’ll watch you skate anytime, sweetheart.” 

“Ah, I almost forgot,” Kibum lifts his glass of water up. “Cheers.” 

“Cheers!” Everyone joins in. 

“Want you guys to keep working hard for the rest of this season,” Kibum tells his skaters. “And I want you all to know that I’m so proud of you, even if it was just a local competition this time.” 

“Every competition is important,” Jinki says wisely. 

“Yes. Keep up the good work, kiddos.” Kibum takes a sip of water. “Make this season our best yet.” 

Bonus time!

RM Figure Skating Club with Coach Namjoon  


Newclear Figure Skating Club with Coach Woohyun  


Luv Little Freaks Figure Skating Club with Coach Kibum  


MEN, FINAL RESULTS

1 |  Taemin LEE | 285.40  
---|---|---  
2 |  Changmin SHIM | 277.42  
3 |  Jinki LEE | 268.67  
4 |  Yixing ZHANG | 267.25  
5 |  Minho CHOI | 265.44  
6 |  Kyuhyun CHO | 264.39  
7 |  Jungkook JEON | 201.36  
8 |  Jimin PARK | 195.78  
9 |  Taehyung KIM | 182.66  
10 |  Yoongi MIN | 180.22  
  
www.isu.org

JUNIOR MEN, FINAL RESULTS

1 |  Jongin KIM | 183.65  
---|---|---  
2 |  Sehun OH | 180.30  
3 |  Yuta NAKAMOTO | 178.42  
4 |  Dongyoung KIM | 177.56  
5 |  Soobin CHOI | 148.58  
6 |  Yeonjun CHOI | 110.67  
7 |  Taehyun KANG | 89.48  
  
www.isu.org

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey~  
>  So I feel like  
>  The sheer size of this chapter kinda justifies why I didn't update for so long  
>  Chaos.  
>  But it was really fun to write :3 so it was totally worth it! And I really hope that you guys like it <3  
>  I'll do my best to keep updating regularly! Thank you guys so much for being invested ;) I love you  
>  Bye bye ^_^
> 
> What was more wholesome? The parents reminiscing or TaeKai's heart-to-heart? =D
> 
> I had a little fun programming and justafei did amazing work with visualizing the club logos! I hope you liked the new additions~
> 
> Today I'll entertain you and tell you in hindsight with what happened while justafei and I were preparing to post the last chapter and justafei was still busy drawing all the amazing costumes.
> 
> Me, hoping that all of you wonderful readers would acknowledge justafei's hard work drawing the costumes:  
>  "If we don't get plenty of cute comments on that chapter I'm adding Angst and Major Character Death to the tags XD."
> 
> justafei, who was at the moment drawing Taemin's Slave costume:  
>  "i will yeet taemin out of existence"  
>  "hes your heavy angst and major character death"  
>  "why is his costume so EXTRA"
> 
> _\--The next day.--_
> 
> justafei, after seeing your amazing comments:  
>  "YAYYYYY WE ARENT KILLING OFF TAEMIN!!!!!"
> 
> Thank you for always reading and sharing your love with us <3\. It makes us beyond happy!
> 
> ^^^ update from justafei: LMAO I'M JUST SEEING THIS A/N FROM ARANEE AND I'M CRYING ALDFKJWALKFEJ y'all I was SO tired pls ;-; someone tell taemin the rent is not due tomorrow--


	19. Interlude Pt. 1

“Do you wanna go skating?” Kyuhyun asks Changmin, Minho, and Jinki. He’s spread-eagled on the living room floor of Minho and Jinki’s shared apartment, absentmindedly blowing his bangs out of his face whenever they fall into his eyes. 

“What time is it?” Jinki looks up from his phone, curled up neatly in the armchair. He’s been silent for the most part of the night while ‘Kyu-Line’ crack their jokes, only occasionally looking up to laugh at a particularly funny piece of gossip. 

“It’s almost 2:30,” Minho slurs from the couch, though not from inebriation. Changmin absentmindedly reaches for the sweet potato chips on the table. “I don’t have the key… we’d have to actually break into the rink.” 

“Who has the key?” 

“Kibum.” Minho states, insinuating a lost cause. At this, Jinki looks up and chuckles to himself before making the pun. 

“‘Key’-bum.” The four of them collapse into sleep-deprived laughter. Changmin spews bits of sweet potato chips all over the place.

“We can go wake him up,” Changmin suggests Minho after they’ve calmed down, brushing crumbs off of his chin. 

“We? No, no. There is no ‘we’ in ‘waking Kibum up,’” Minho corrects him. “YOU can go wake him up. I, for one, want to get up in the morning with all my limbs attached.” 

“We’re sleeping tonight?” Kyuhyun sounds surprised. “Huh.” 

“I am.” Jinki rolls his eyes. 

“Oh, no skating then?” 

“You three can go. I’m falling asleep over here.” Jinki pulls himself into an even smaller ball in the chair and leans his head against the leather, scrolling through his news feed with half-closed eyes. A certain article catches his eye just as he thumbs past it, and he scrolls back up. “What…” Jinki chuckles tiredly. “Ming, you hate Changmin.” 

“I really do. Wait, what? No, nono--sorry, babe--” Minho fends off Changmin when the elder lunges towards him while he looks to Jinki bewilderedly. 

“‘Choi and Shim Seem Tense at Cherry Blossom this Weekend,’” Jinki reads the article dramatically. “Oh, they even got a picture of you two glaring at each other.” On the floor, Kyuhyun claps his hands in glee. 

“The clickbait just gets better and better each year,” Minho chortles when Changmin calms down and throws an arm around Minho. “Anything else?” 

“Just that.” Jinki sighs and clicks out of the article. “The writing wasn’t even interesting.” 

“Aw. I was looking forward to hearing some skating drama scheme.” Kyuhyun sighs in disappointment. 

“We’re besties, right, Chami?” Minho makes kissy faces towards Changmin, who recoils and wiggles back to the other side of the couch. Silence befalls the four of them. Then, 

“So who’s going to wake Kibum up?” Kyuhyun lifts his head a little to peer at everybody else. 

“Maybe Minseok is a better option,” Minho speculates. “He IS a night owl--” Changmin flinches in surprise as Minho flails around, struggling to sit up straight on the couch. He points to Jinki, who looks over the top of his phone at Minho. “You.” 

“What?” Jinki suppresses a smile.

“You have a copy of the key.” 

Reality feels a little altered when Minho finally manages to unlock the rink door in the dim illumination provided by Kyuhyun’s phone flashlight. Sure, Minho’s been here everyday for years now, and he’s pretty sure he could walk the perimeter of the building with his eyes closed, upside down, at 3 a.m. in the morning--he’s satisfying two out of three conditions anyway--but he’s still very aware of the sound of Kyuhyun, Changmin, and his own footsteps echoing around the facility. 

“Turn… the lights on?” Kyuhyun suggests. 

“That ruins all the fun,” Minho complains. By the light of the streetlights and moon streaming in through the glass door, he can just make out the door to the rink, and the row of benches situated in the lobby. And inside the rink, only the two emergency lights on the wall closest to the penalty benches are turned on, leaving just enough light to skate somewhat safely. The three of them lace up their skates quietly. Minho derives more happiness than he reasonably should from the fact that he gets to skate in baggy sweatpants and a comfortable sweatshirt. Breaking practice dress code is a criminal offense in Kibum’s eyes; Minho is practically committing a felony. 

The first step onto the clean, smooth, dimly lit rink is magical _.  _ The darkened ambience heightens all other senses of the three skaters, and the quiet cut of blades gliding against the ice is the most delicate, attuned sound that Minho has ever heard. It’s a beautiful feeling--getting the entire rink to himself and his friends in the middle of the night, all social norms thrown out the window. Minho feels reverent, then giddy. 

“Boo.” It’s just a short burst of sound from Changmin, but it’s unexpected, and Kyuhyun screams. Minho’s shriek of laughter echoes and bounces off the walls of the stadium. The silence is broken, and Minho makes a beeline for the middle of the rink. Snow flies out from either side of his edges, and scatters over the pristine surface in little flurries when Minho cuts deeper into the ice to gather speed. He goes flying into what seems like a sit spin, but at the last moment, he lets his legs fly out from underneath him, sits down on his butt, and links his hands underneath his thighs. The rotational momentum that he gathered, combined with the fact that there is practically no friction at all, carries him around and around so that he’s literally spinning on his ass. A classic party trick, but it never gets old. Smooth, untouched ice, and no Kibum is grounds for a butt spin, whether Minho is six or twenty-three. He lands spread-eagled on his back when his momentum runs out, and stares up at the ceiling until Changmin swizzles over and picks him up by his blades. 

“Yahhh, yayayaya!--” Minho is helpless to do anything as Changmin skates backwards and drags him by the blades on his back. A couple of curving crossovers give Changmin enough speed and momentum to swing Minho away. Minho goes flying across the ice, still laying on his back and cursing indignantly. On the side, Kyuhyun slides by, spinning across the surface on his knees with his hands neatly folded in his lap. 

“My ass is all wet now,” Minho complains, standing up and wincing at the feeling. At least the wet spot won’t show through the black fabric. 

“Self-instigated,” Changmin shrugs. He extends a hand to Kyuhyun, who is fruitlessly making a snow angel a few feet away. “Kyu, spin with me.” Kyuhyun promptly kicks his legs over his head and gets up using a kip-up. Minho’s jaw drops. 

“How?” he demands, immediately sitting back down on the ice, preparing to try. 

“Just land on your toe picks.” Kyuhyun strokes over to Changmin and grasps his hand tightly. The two of them circle around each other and pull into a couple’s spin. All goes well until they attempt to exit the spin nicely, and Minho just hears crazed laughing as the two of them realize they have no idea how to get themselves out of the position. 

“Just spin it out,” Changmin’s words are lost in between his laughter and the wind that whips past him as he holds onto Kyuhyun’s waist and leg. Minho gathers enough courage to try a kip-up, and stands up promptly to fall forward onto his stomach. 

“Uhf!” Kyuhyun ducks under Changmin’s skate--the blade misses his cheek by an inch--and stumbles away to topple on the ice and hold his head in his hands as the entire world keeps on revolving around him. 

“I’m so tired,” Changmin mumbles, sitting down on the ice as well. Minho rolls over to try and kip-up again. 

“You nearly cut me,” Kyuhyun accuses Changmin. 

“It’s fine,” Changmin dismisses. “Getting run over is an occupational hazard.” 

“Uh!” Minho finally succeeds at getting up, and whoops in victory, skating into a karate kick. “Kyu, can you do a backflip?” 

“I’ve tried.” Changmin and Kyuhyun watch as Minho gathers speed and flies into a Triple Toe-backflip with zero warm-up. Minho’s hood flips neatly onto his head as he lands, and he shakes it off impatiently.

“Where do you even get the time to learn these things,” Changmin grumbles, getting to his feet and patting the two wet spots where his knees have been kneeling on the ice. “And how…” 

“Anything is possible if you’re not afraid to die.” 

“If I don’t kill myself, Woohyun just might do the job.” Changmin generates speed from around the corner anyway, but just as his toe pick is about to hit the ice, he bails and pops it into an easy Double Flip jump instead. 

“No, no, you got it.” Minho skates over to show Changmin how to walk through the technique. “It’s a Flip, just throw your arms back and haul ass.” 

“What if I only make it halfway around before I’m on the ice?” 

“F.” 

“God, I’m not even gonna think about it.” Changmin picks up speed again, only to turn forwards and scream right before his attempt. Kyuhyun finally gets up and leisurely makes his way to Minho, who’s standing on the sidelines, eyeing Changmin’s shadowy silhouette circle the rink over and over. 

“Just do it!” Minho flaps his hands in a gesture of impatience. 

“AHHHHHHHH!” 

“Shouldn’t he take off his sweatshirt before he tries?” Kyuhyun asks, lying prone on the thin barrier with his head turned so that he can watch Changmin. “Chami, strip!” 

“What?!” 

“You’ll die!” 

“Oh, right.” Changmin chucks his sweatshirt at Minho when he passes by them for the umpteenth time. 

“It’s not that bad,” Minho calls. “You just gotta say ‘fuck it’ and go for it.” Changmin circles one last time and picks with every intent of attempting the jump. He makes it all the way around--thank God--but his legs fly out from under him when they land and he falls straight on his ass. 

“Oh, ffffuck.” Minho cringes just from watching Changmin fall. Kyuhyun flinches so hard he topples off of the barrier and Minho has to catch him before he crumples onto the ice. “You good?” 

“Fuck you,” Changmin’s voice carries thinly through the rink as he rolls over and curls into a ball dramatically. 

“But you lived.” Minho and Kyuhyun make their way over to Changmin, who bangs a fist against Minho’s skate when he sprays the elder with snow as he stops to stand over him. “You’ll probably land it if you try again.” 

“Absolutely not.” Changmin groans and pats his butt tenderly. 

“You’ll bruise for sure. Better not fall on any jumps for the next few days,” Kyuhyun sniggers. Minho squats down beside Changmin’s figure and traces the imprint of an edge carved into the ice with the tip of a gloved finger. 

“Oh, FUCK!” Minho swears at the top of his lungs. 

“What?” 

“The staff is gonna know we were here.” Minho stands up and gestures to the patterns of toe picks, edges, and powdery snow that glimmers in the spotlight created by the emergency lights across the rink. “We can’t get rid of that.” 

“Well, shit.” Kyuhyun looks out at the surface, too. “Shit.” 

“Too late now.” Minho gets over his anxiety relatively quickly, and squats down again to collect a pile of snow and pat it into a snowball. Changmin realizes far too late what’s about to happen. 

“No!” Minho’s aim is perfect, and Changmin screeches as he’s momentarily blinded. By the time he’s scrambled to his feet, Minho is already flying down to the other side of the rink. The long skid that he uses to stop creates more snow, which he uses to create more artillery. 

“Kyu, help me out here,” Changmin pleads, but he didn’t need to ask--Kyuhyun is already furiously sliding from side to side, building up a massive pile of snow. 

“Yah! Shit--” Minho doesn’t stand a chance when the first snowball hits him square in the back of his neck. Kyuhyun tackles him and wraps his arms around Minho’s torso, trapping his arms by his side in the process. Changmin’s golf-ball sized snowball explodes in Minho’s eyes. “Son of a bitch,” Minho growls, and Changmin just laughs in the face of imminent death, because Minho’s all fired up now. He wrestles his way out of Kyuhyun’s hold and takes off in a sprint across the ice. Kyuhyun goes after him, and snags onto the back of his sweatshirt just as Minho catches up to Changmin and wraps a hand around his wrist. Changmin trips at the sudden change in direction, and tumbles onto the ice. Minho swears loudly as he falls on top of the Olympian, accompanied by Kyuhyun’s indignant screech when he gets tugged down as well. Changmin extricates his arms and wraps them around whatever body parts of the two other skaters are on top of him. He can barely breathe with the combined weight of Minho and Kyuhyun crushing him, but his laughter is uncontrollable, and is forced out in little gasps. They echo around the dark, cold, and empty stadium with Minho’s cursing and Kyuhyun’s complaining. 

The room is entirely too light when Sehun blearily opens his eyes. He’s confused for just a second, then panic floods his entire body as he registers the fact that he can actually see things clearly, instead of only being able to make out shadowy shapes in the pre-dawn grayness. 

“Shit. Shit. Shit.” Sehun groans and throws the back of his hand over his eyes as he rolls over from his side to stare up at the ceiling. He’s so fucked. 

“Baby?” Junmyeon’s sleepy voice cuts through Sehun’s swirling thoughts of resigned dread, then his arm drapes around Sehun’s waist lazily. “Good morning.” 

“Did you set an alarm last night?” Sehun whisper-croaks. 

“Hn?” Junmyeon’s grasp on Sehun tightens, and he pulls himself towards Sehun’s warmth. “No. Why would I?” 

“What do you mean, ‘why would you?’” Irrational annoyance floods through Sehun, even though he knows his schedule technically isn’t Junmyeon’s responsibility. “I just slept through practice. Fuck, Kibum’s gonna murder me.” 

“What practice?” Junmyeon nestles himself into Sehun’s side, as unworried as can be. “You have… the day off, right?” 

“Huh?” Sehun blinks a couple times in surprise before it finally registers. It’s the day after the competition; of course he doesn’t have anything today. “Oh!” 

“Mmmm.” Junmyeon yawns sleepily and tugs Sehun’s shirt to get the younger to turn towards him and return the cuddles. “Go back to sleep.” 

“Fuck, I almost had a heart attack,” Sehun mumbles, pulling his boyfriend closer and slipping an arm under Junmyeon’s neck to cradle him close. Junmyeon only hums and buries his face in Sehun’s shirt. 

The next time Sehun wakes up, it’s a couple hours later, and Junmyeon is nowhere to be seen. Sehun sits up in bed and stretches upwards, feeling his back crack as he twists slightly. For the first time in forever, he actually feels wide awake and refreshed, instead of groggy and fuzzy. No matter how early he goes to bed most days, 4:30 am is still an ungodly hour that nobody should have to wake up at everyday. Sehun hauls himself out of bed and shuffles into the hallway in search of Junmyeon. He finds the elder sitting at the kitchen table, a mug of tea to his right, and a pile of papers in front of him. Junmyeon looks up and smiles. 

“You missed practice.” 

“Jun,” Sehun complains, lips twitching in spite of his best efforts. 

“It’s habitual for you. I’m not surprised.” Junmyeon gets up and wraps his arms around Sehun’s waist. The younger places his own hand over Junmyeon’s left one and lifts it up to rest against his shoulder, then grasps Junmyeon’s other hand. 

“What are you doing?” Junmyeon looks up with a soft, contented smile into Sehun’s face. 

“Starlight or Viennese?” Sehun asks, swaying a little in the waltz position. 

“...Starlight?” Junmyeon hazards. 

“Good choice,” Sehun murmurs, beginning to lead their impromptu dance around Junmyeon’s kitchen, careful not to hit a sharp corner of a drawer or table. Junmyeon follows clumsily, not even attempting to replicate Sehun’s precise steps, but laughing nonetheless. Sehun breaks hold to twirl Junmyeon around. 

“Personally, I like Starlight a lot more,” Sehun murmurs, giving up on technique and sliding both arms around Junmyeon’s waist this time. The elder places his hands on Sehun’s shoulders, and Sehun pulls him close as they sway in a lazy little circle. “But Minho-hyung dances a graceful Viennese waltz, if I do say so myself.” 

“Uh huh.” 

“He’s a Triple Gold Medalist. Which actually pales in comparison to the rest of his accolades, but it’s still interesting.” 

“Gold Medal for what?” 

“Nothing.” Sehun smirks. “He’s just a Triple Gold Medalist. It means he passed his Moves, Freeskate, and Dance tests.” 

“You just have Moves, right?” 

“Yes. I’m Single.” 

“No, you’re not.” Junmyeon laughs in appreciation of his own pun while Sehun’s hands tighten around Junmyeon’s waist and he huffs in mild amusement. 

“It’s impressive, actually. Most solo skaters don’t bother passing their Dance tests,” Sehun shares. “But Ice Dance actually helps a lot with skating skills. Maybe I’ll get my Pre-Gold and Gold dances tested after this season, too.” 

“Uh huh.” Junmyeon nods. 

“What should we do today?” Sehun wonders out loud. 

“Let’s not tire you out,” Junmyeon murmurs. 

“We could go into the city.” 

“If you want,” Junmyeon agrees instantly. “I have some papers I need to finish grading for my professor, but we could do that.” 

“Or just stay home,” Sehun stifles a yawn. “I’m fine with that, too.” 

“Whatever you want.” 

“Jongin runs here with Yixing-hyung sometimes,” Sehun murmurs, indicating the small paved trail behind them that creates a 5 kilometer long loop around the lake. Junmyeon hums to indicate that he’s listening, but he’s more interested in how handsome Sehun looks as a gust of wind blows his soft black hair away from his face. An overwhelming sense of affection and love for the younger overtakes Junmyeon as they sit on a blanket together under the shade of a cherry blossom tree. “I wonder if they’re here today.” 

“On your free day? Somehow, I doubt that.” Junmyeon reaches out and tucks a wind-blown lock of hair behind his boyfriend’s ear. Sehun leans into Junmyeon’s touch, as if they aren’t already pressed shoulder to shoulder, watching the tall grasses by the bank sway in the summer breeze, and squinting against the sun’s reflections that scatter on the surface of the lake. 

“This is nice.” Sehun sighs and goes completely boneless. Junmyeon struggles to keep Sehun upright against him, but the younger has other ideas, letting himself fall over to lay his head in Junmyeon’s lap. 

“It’s not often we get a day like this,” Junmyeon agrees. 

“Almost makes me not want to go back to training,” Sehun murmurs, sighing happily when Junmyeon’s fingers tangle themselves in Sehun’s hair and brush lightly against his scalp. 

“Maybe. I think you would get bored of doing nothing after a while, though.” 

“I would not,” Sehun declares, drawing out his program blueprint on Junmyeon’s thigh with a single finger. “I would give anything to just sit around and vegetate all day.” 

“Mhm,” Junmyeon hums amusedly, laying a hand on Sehun’s smooth cheek affectionately. Sehun’s hand comes up and catches Junmyeon’s fingers before they pull away. 

“Jun?” 

“Yeah?” 

“Why do you like me?” 

“Huh?” Junmyeon is startled at the sudden change in subject. Sehun shifts in his lap so that he’s no longer looking at the pretty scenery, but instead up at Junmyeon, who brushes Sehun’s hair off of his forehead while he contemplates the question. “So sudden. Are you searching for compliments, gorgeous?” Junmyeon smiles down at Sehun, who rolls his eyes. 

“Just wanna know.” 

“I feel like you should know after over three years,” Junmyeon comments gently, still stroking Sehun’s hair as he contemplates his answer. 

“I kinda do, but I don’t. Not really.” Sehun clasps Junmyeon’s other hand to his chest, so that Junmyeon can feel the warmth of Sehun’s skin through his t-shirt, and the steady, slow beating of his heart, strong and unwavering from years of elite endurance training. Junmyeon sighs quietly. 

“I like you because you’re cute.” Silence. Sehun glances up at him incredulously. 

“Is that it?” 

“Yeah.” 

“Jun!” Sehun whines, and Junmyeon laughs as Sehun sits up and pushes him over onto the blanket indignantly. “Jun, I’m serious!” Junmyeon’s fingers come up to grip Sehun’s wrists, then slide to unclench Sehun’s fists and intertwine themselves with the younger’s fingers. 

“I’m being serious.” Junmyeon’s palms are warm against Sehun’s as the skater kneels next to him, shooting Junmyeon a very unamused look that doesn’t deter the elder in the slightest. Junmyeon’s smile doesn’t waver. “You are cute and handsome and sexy. You’re kind and funny. You give me butterflies. You push me to be the best version of myself. When I’m with you, it feels like I’m on top of--” 

“Stop, stop. No.” Sehun winces. “That’s so fucking cringy.” 

“You asked, and I answered,” comes Junmyeon’s sensible reply, even though he looks very pleased with himself when Sehun flops down on the blanket beside him and turns to lie on his side so he can look at Junmyeon. 

“No, seriously,” Sehun requests one last time. “Why?” 

“Why do you like me?” Junmyeon counters. 

“I asked YOU,” Sehun whines. 

“I’ll answer you if you answer me.” 

“I just do.” Sehun’s eyes flicker away from Junmyeon for a moment, feigning indifference. As if he could ever pretend to be tsundere about his affection for Junmyeon. The elder smothers his laughter. “You take care of me and you’re… reallyhot and… ugh.” Sehun shudders at his own sappy words; Junmyeon’s signature smile grows and grows as Sehun flounders. “I dunno.” 

“I’m hot?” 

“Yah.” Sehun’s eyes study Junmyeon’s face before quickly roving over Junmyeon’s figure. “12 out of 10 would fuck.” There’s that sly little smile that Junmyeon is far too used to. 

“You’re hot, too.” Junmyeon flirts back casually; Sehun’s faintly annoyed act fades away to be replaced with playfulness. “So sexy, especially with that short program.” 

“Sunbae, I’m only 18.” Sehun flashes his eye smile and wrinkles his nose cutely.

“Oh please, don’t pull that shit.” Junmyeon bursts into laughter and reaches out for Sehun’s hand on the blanket. After years of holding Sehun close, Junmyeon’s fingers find and trace all the hardened calluses and faint scars on Sehun’s hand effortlessly, having memorized all the little details. Sehun knows Junmyeon just as well, moving his thumb in little circles when the elder interlaces their hands because Junmyeon likes the feeling. 

“Sunbae--” 

“Sehun-ssi,” Junmyeon retorts, and Sehun wrinkles his nose at the deviance from the usual pet names. 

“Nooo. Jun…” 

“Baby.” 

“You never answered my question.” 

“Ah, we’re still on that topic?” Junmyeon asks, completely unsurprised. 

“Jun!” 

“I don’t know either, love.” Junmyeon finally gets to the point, even though it’s not the answer Sehun wanted. “Everything I said earlier was true, but it’s only a tiny fraction of why.” 

“Why?” Sehun presses. 

“You couldn’t answer me when I asked,” Junmyeon points out. “I like you. Nice and simple. I love you.” 

“I guess it’s more of a feeling,” Sehun sighs, and Junmyeon hums in agreement, tugging on Sehun’s hand to get him to scoot closer to Junmyeon. Sehun shifts close enough so that their foreheads touch. “Jun?” 

“Listening, love.” 

“What will you do when you graduate?” 

“You’re just full of questions today, aren’t you?” Junmyeon smiles fondly. “I’ll find a job, of course.” 

“Will you move away?” Sehun’s heart aches at the thought. 

“Not if I can help it,” Junmyeon reassures the younger. “I’d like to stay close to home.” 

“What about me?” 

“You’re part of home.” Junmyeon smiles when Sehun’s breath catches in his throat in surprised happiness. “You sleep over so much, you may as well just move in. Wouldn’t be much of a difference anyway.” 

“Sunbae, I’m only 18.” 

“Oh, you.” Junmyeon chuckles when Sehun molds his lips against Junmyeon’s and mouths at him softly a few times. Junmyeon pulls away rather reluctantly before it gets too hot and heavy in public; they’re already pushing it as is. Sehun’s face is flushed with contentment.

“Hey,” Kibum strolls into the cafe with a stylish tote bag slung over one shoulder, and nods at Minseok and Kyungsoo, already situated in a cozy corner with two iced coffees and a table strewn with papers and notebooks. “Good morning.”

“Morning,” Minseok greets, eyes wide and eager as usual. It’s quite jarring to see him dressed in skinny jeans and an oversized graphic t-shirt instead of his usual coaching attire. Kyungsoo not so much--the jump specialist sports a baseball cap and all-black athletic ensemble which could pass for something he would wear to the rink. Kibum takes a seat across from both of them, opens up his laptop, and pulls out a paperclipped sheaf of papers to add to the mess that is already on the table. 

“Protocols.” Kibum nods to the pile. “From yesterday.” 

“Choreo.” Minseok points to his notebook, then begins gesturing to individual papers. “Strengths and weaknesses. Concepts. Four-year plans. Training setups.” Kyungsoo simply twirls a pen in between his index and middle finger and takes a sip of his iced coffee. Kibum doesn’t bother asking him where his notes are; the man has the entire rulebook memorized. 

“No off days for us,” Kibum sighs, unclipping his stack of protocols and handing the one on top to Kyungsoo. Kyungsoo takes them and begins scrutinizing the GOEs and program component scores. 

“Hm.” Kyungsoo’s full lips purse out even more as he evaluates Jinki’s performance from a technical standpoint. “7’s on program components.” 

“Huh.” Minseok flips to Jinki’s page. “That’s his free skate?” When Kyungsoo nods in affirmation, Minseok shakes his head. “Yeah, he needs to be in the high 8.5’s and 9’s. That program is impactful.” 

“‘To Build A Home’ has been skated before by many good skaters,” Kibum supplies. “When he brings this program out into the international spotlight, he’ll need to provide a fresh interpretation.” 

“But it’s his last year. I think something sentimental would do,” Minseok says thoughtfully. “He will have to make the announcement to the press at Nebelhorn Trophy.” 

“But everyone is sentimental for that piece. Jinks can bring something new to the table while also portraying that side of the music.” 

“Soo, could I see the protocol for a second? Thank you.” Minseok takes the paper from Kyungsoo. “This Triple Lutz didn’t get a plus 4 GOE?” 

“He landed it clean,” Kibum informs the other two. 

“Weak transitions score, and low GOEs on some of the elements which we know he could do.” Minseok taps his paper. “He needs more transitions in general. The program feels very barefaced right now.” 

“But it doesn’t need to be complicated for him to skate it well. The idea of the program is to be simple, but  _ he  _ is complex,” Kibum sighs. He can already feel the beginnings of a headache coming on. 

“This transition score isn’t really screaming complex to me.” 

“It’s still early in the season, the program is still new. He’ll skate into it more as the season continues.” 

“You need to consider that by Nebelhorn, he’s got to deliver this program like he will at Worlds. It’s not like we have six months left. And we haven’t even talked about his jumps yet. We don’t want to build something that makes it seem like he’s recycling concepts, or that he can’t keep up with the youngsters anymore--” 

“Oh, hell, no.” 

“Exactly, but--”

“What is the issue?” Kyungsoo cuts in irritably. Kibum and Minseok both look at him incredulously. 

“Were you even listening?” Kibum sighs. 

“Yes. There is no issue.” Kyungsoo shrugs. “Jinki’s program will mature. Give him two months. The protocol is inaccurate.” 

“How do you know?” 

“They’re underscoring seasoned skaters at local competitions this year. We’re seeing the same trend over in America, China, and Canada.”

“What about Changmin, then?” Minseok challenges.

“Just an outlier. He skated well, and there’s nothing to be said about it.” Kibum suppresses a small smile. This is exactly why he keeps Kyungsoo around; not only is he an easy colleague to work with, but he also knows all the miniscule inner workings of figure skating judging. Those four years in which he served as a technical specialist, and his continued work with jump analyzation technology give him niche bits and pieces of information that he gathers from the inner workings of the International Skating Union, ISU. Kibum never argues, because Kyungsoo’s hardly ever been wrong. He nods slowly. 

“Is there anything urgent that should be covered?” 

“No.” Kyungsoo crosses his arms and sighs. “Not worried about any of them. Ah, Taemin--” 

“What about Taemin?” Kibum immediately gets protective of his skaters. 

“Nothing to worry over. But there’s no doubt that they’re watching him the closest, to see if he will burn out.” Kyungsoo huffs. “He came out of nowhere, of course the Federation is interested. We have to be careful that he doesn’t get injured.” 

“Oh, that’s far beyond our jurisdiction.” Minseok bursts into cheerful laughter. “He does what he wants to.” 

“Agreed.” Kibum sighs tiredly and a small smile pulls at the corner of his lips. “He’s his own entity.” He shuffles the protocols a little before posing his next question. “Okay, so what should we be focusing on this year?” He turns to Kyungsoo, who mulls over this question briefly. 

“I think you know. I don’t really need to tell you.” Kyungsoo leans forward and props his chin up against his hand. “Our plan doesn’t really have to change compared to the beginning of the season. Best case scenario, Jongin gets Top 10 at his JGP’s, Sehun gets an international assignment for next year, and we have two skaters at GPF. As far as I’m concerned, we’re still on the right track. I doubt we’ll need to extensively discuss anything until, say, after Nebelhorn and Chinese Nationals. The season has barely begun, after all.” 

“Okay. Great.” Kibum stretches upwards lazily, and nods to Minseok. “How’s Luhan?” 

“Good.” Minseok’s hand unconsciously touches the gold band encircling his left ring finger, usually covered by gloves out on the ice. 

“When are you two planning on getting married?” 

“Next year, probably,” Minseok answers nonchalantly, but his eyes are bright at the mention of his non-skater fiance. “No rush.” Kyungsoo appraises his colleague sitting beside him quietly. When Minseok turns towards him questioningly, Kyungsoo shows one of his rare smiles. “What?” 

“Just thinking that if you brought him to the rink one day, Jongin wouldn’t even know who he is.” 

“Oh, you’re right.” Minseok’s eyes crinkle up at the corners. “It’s alright, he’ll find out in due time.” 

“Jongin is cute.” Kibum muses, chuckling to himself. 

“Nini? Yes,” Minseok agrees. Kibum glances up at the choreographer, who meets his eyes with a knowing smile. 

“How long do you think it’s going to take?” Kibum asks rather abruptly. Minseok’s smile grows wide at the direct reference to what they’re both thinking. 

“That’s hard to say. Do you think Taemin knows?” 

“No.” Kibum resolutely shakes his head. “There’s no way, all he’s ever thinking about is his Flip.” 

“Ahh. Then Nini doesn’t stand a chance until Taemin retires.”

“Shame,” Kyungsoo murmurs absentmindedly, scrolling through his phone. 

“It really is a shame,” Minseok agrees, but Kyungsoo talks right over him. 

“Hochstein from the US is retiring.” Kyungsoo looks up as Minseok and Kyungsoo both burst into laughter at his words. “What?” 

“I’m saying it’s a shame that Nini won’t get the guy,” Minseok explains. 

“What guy?” 

“Ahhh, you didn’t notice, Soo?” Kibum pretends to dismiss Kyungsoo with a lazy wave of his hand. “He makes it so obvious, too.” 

“Soo and Taeminnie sort of radiate on the same wavelength, if you think about it,” Minseok suggests to Kibum. “Skating-oriented, you know.” He turns to Kyungsoo, who shrugs blankly. 

“I don’t know.” 

“Jongin has a little crush,” Kibum spells it out for Kyungsoo, who’s still lost in the sauce. 

“Ahh.” Kyungsoo sighs. “If he focused a little more on his timing, and less on his love life, he would make my job much easier.” 

“If Taemin focused more on his love life, would that make my job easier?” Kibum wonders out loud. “How ironic. Maybe if we combined them, we’d have a star student.” 

“Would be nice.” Minseok chuckles and glances down at his phone. “Are we done here?” 

“Seems like it.” Kibum stands up. “That was quick and painless.” 

“Unlike work tomorrow,” Kyungsoo grumbles, standing up as well and tipping the visor of his baseball cap down below his eyes. “See you.” 

“Bye, Soo!” Minseok chirps, then waves to Kibum as well. “I guess I’ll meet up with Luhan for lunch, since we finished early.” 

“Have fun with that. I’ll see you two tomorrow.” Kibum half-smiles, half-grimaces as his phone buzzes with a text. “Christ. Just got a tip-off that Kyu-Line broke into the rink last night.” 

“Ah, I would expect nothing less.” Minseok’s laugh hangs around in the warm cafe even as the door closes behind him. 

“Go to bed,” Jinki scolds Minho when he spots the latter sprawled out sideways on the couch, looking like he’s about to fall asleep at any moment. “Don’t make Kyuhyun sleep on the floor just because you’re tired.” 

“My head is about to fucking split in two,” Minho spits with as much ferocity as a man surviving on four shots of espresso and post-adrenaline energy can muster. 

“Bed,” Jinki simply suggests. Minho ignores him. 

“--fucking Kibum texted me, and started fucking pissing himself about last night, who’s going to get the stick out of his ass and tell him to shut the fu--” 

“Let’s check the language just a tiiiny bit, please.” 

“Fuck me.” Minho gracelessly falls off the couch and gets to his feet tiredly to meander over to his bedroom. 

“I believe you have already, ah, screwed yourself over.” Jinki runs a hand over the back of his hair to ensure that it’s flat--he’ll get scolded if it’s not--and calls out into the apartment just before opening the door. “I’m going out!” 

“Bye.”

“Mom,” Jinki greets, standing up from the couch in the hotel lobby when he catches sight of his mother. “Did you sleep well?” 

“I slept pretty good. It’s a nice hotel, and everything is very comfortable and clean.” Jinki’s mother pulls her son into a warm hug that Jinki eagerly returns. “Sweetheart, how are you?” 

“Me? I’m great. No practice today; I couldn’t be better.” Jinki’s face splits into an easy smile as he offers his elbow to his mother to loop her arm through. “There’s a really pretty garden a little ways from here. Do you want to go?” 

“You lead the way.” 

“The roses will all be in bloom.” Jinki comments as they set off. “I go there a lot in my free time. Well, I don’t have much free time of course, but it’s still a nice place to take a walk or go running.” 

“Always busy then?” Jinki’s mother inquires. 

“Well, you know how it is, mom.” Jinki huffs out an amused smile. “Haven’t had a real break in years now.” 

“I understand, but make sure you’re taking care of yourself,” Jinki’s mother frets. “You look so thin out on the ice these days. Make sure that you’re eating enough to keep up with all that training.” 

“I know, I know.” 

“Don’t pay attention to whatever Kibum says about dieting,” she scolds, and Jinki laughs delightedly at this. 

“The question is if anyone pays attention to what he says in the first place.” 

“He’s always been a little overbearing at times,” Jinki’s mother says wisely. 

“Hit the nail right on the head, mom. Then again, you always did boss him around when I was younger,” Jinki muses. 

“Of course I did, you were too young to make decisions about your training. Now you can make those choices for yourself, but someone had to stand up to him when you were little,” she retorts, and mother and son share a laugh together. “Don’t let him boss you around so much. He means well, but he’s still young.” 

“Mhm,” Jinki agrees, directing his mother to turn left at the end of the block. “Training is much more independent these days, though.” 

“It’s because you were able to start taking control of your career,” Jinki’s mother observes wisely. “You make me feel old, sweetheart.” 

“Ahh,” Jinki complains, “Don’t say that, it’s only been a few years.” 

“It’s true, though. Do you remember all the time we spent analyzing your practices? I took you everywhere. But now, you do all of these things on your own.” Jinki’s mothers’ voice softens. “And this is your last competitive year.” 

“It just doesn’t feel like it used to,” Jinki admits. “I’m tired. I want to move on to other things after this year. Spend more time with you.” 

“I won’t say no to that.” Jinki’s mother smiles softly. “But it just seems like last week when you were crying about not being able to land your Single Axel.” She chuckles as they arrive at the entrance of the park’s garden. 

“Sometimes it really does feel like time passed by too quickly. How did we pull it off?” Jinki murmurs, because he genuinely wants to know. “All those early mornings and late nights. The slow-motion videotaping, and long drives to competitions, and falling asleep on the subway after workouts. When we were in the moment, it didn’t really feel like anything special. It was just one day at a time. But now, looking back… I’m exhausted just from thinking about it. I don’t know how we managed to get here.” 

“Me, neither,” Jinki’s mother admits softly. “I know that if you asked me to go through it now, I wouldn’t be able to keep up. Oh, these are pretty.” Jinki glances to the bed of flowers that his mother is motioning to. 

“They are. Did you know Minho fell into these once?” 

“Now that you mention it, the right side does seem a little squashed.” 

“Mom!” Jinki bursts into laughter at his mother’s dry humor before turning back to their light, nostalgic conversation. “I wouldn’t be able to go through it either. Not right now. But if you asked me to do it again… I think I would. Even if I wouldn’t be guaranteed the same outcome of making it.” 

“What if you knew you wouldn’t make it?” Jinki’s mother asks. Her son tucks his lower lip between his teeth and thinks about this for the time it takes to walk over a stone path and a red bridge built across a small creek. 

“I might. I really might do it again.” Jinki brushes a few strands of hair out of his eyes. “The thing is, I gained so much from my years of training. I see everything differently because of the mindset that skating gave me. I wouldn’t be myself without skating, would I?” 

“I think you would be a completely different person without skating,” Jinki’s mother admits. “I also think about how I could have given you a better start with the path you decided to take. We wasted a lot of years before you finally broke through. You’re not like Nathan Chen, who hasn’t missed a Nationals appearance since he was 10. Would you be better if I had given you that head start by finding you an Olympic-level coach when you were still a toddler?” 

“Do I really need that?” Jinki asks. “I made it in the end. And even if I hadn’t, I wouldn’t regret a second of our hard work and sacrifice.” Jinki shrugs. “If I had to change something, it would be how I approached skating--but not from a technical perspective. I want to tell my younger self to just do what makes me happy.” 

“Skating made you happy.” 

“It did; I was happy. But when I was little, I used to follow training and habits so mechanically. The only thing on my mind was what I had to do to reach my goals, and what my next steps were. That’s all I spent my time doing. But now that I’m older, I see things differently. I wish I had known that I was allowed to be happy, relax a little, and have fun in the process as well. That’s why I’m okay with retiring, and finding other paths now. I realized that skating doesn’t always need to be so serious.” Jinki purses his lips slightly as he thinks about his next words. “I also appreciate you more now that I’m older, mom. I realized how much you did for me when I was younger, when I was hot-headed and overflowing with ambition.” 

“I only wanted the best for you. You were so driven as a child, and that gave me strength. Skating made you happy, and I just wanted to support you.” Jinki’s mother chuckles lightly while Jinki’s throat closes up just a fraction. “Your independence is the biggest difference that I feel. When you first left home, I found that I had all this free time that I didn’t know how to fill. Home was very empty with you gone, and on top of that, my schedule suddenly got so easy. It wasn’t necessarily relaxing. For the longest time, I kept waking up at five in the morning because I was just so used to it.” 

“Oh, geez.” Jinki smiles. “Sorry.”

“It was a big transition. And I found myself worrying a lot, because for so many years, I had always known what you were doing with your training. I watched all of your practices, and we always broke them down afterwards. Went to all of your competitions and took you to all your workouts. Not having to do that anymore was extremely… well. It definitely took an adjustment. I started worrying about how you were coping, because you had to do everything yourself. Wanted to ease some of that pressure that suddenly piled on top of you.” 

“When I first moved away, it was hard.” Jinki closes his eyes and huffs out a sigh. “It really was difficult. And for all the reasons you must have suspected.” 

“I know. For a long time, I wondered if letting you move away was the right decision.” 

“That was probably the biggest decision we’ve ever made,” Jinki says softly, and his mother hums in agreement. “But I’m glad we made it.” 

“I am, too. I’m so proud of you.” Jinki’s mother smiles. “You’ve grown into such a handsome young man. You take me on walks and invite me to competitions. You even have some little dongsaengs of your own now.” 

“Oh, they’re so cute.” Jinki smiles at the thought of Taemin, Jongin, and Sehun. “All of them. I know they’re just a few years younger, but I can’t help but see myself.” 

“They also remind me of you. I saw you stand in for Jongin during his practice. I think you will be a great coach,” Jinki’s mother says thoughtfully. “You were always a very patient child.” 

“Kibum’s keen on the idea of letting me coach the younger ones. Just between you and me, he might be taking on more people pretty soon.” 

“That doesn’t surprise me.” 

“Mhm.” Jinki stops at the rose bushes, which are in full bloom, luscious green leaves and stems dotted with delicate blooms of red, pink, and white. “Stop and smell the roses, mom.” 

“Finally.” Jinki’s mother chuckles, and so Jinki does, knowing it means so much more than the literal connotation. “Roses smell so sweet.” The fragrance wafts along the light summer breeze, and Jinki inhales deeply. 

“Do you want a rose, mom?” 

“Are you allowed to pick them?” 

“Shhh.” Jinki extricates his arm from his mother’s gentle grasp, and locates a red rose whose stem isn’t too covered with thorns. He breaks it off, leaving a few inches of thin stem, and presents it to his mother. 

“Thank you, sweetheart.” His mother gently twirls the stem in between her fingers, admiring the velvety-soft, deep red petals. 

“No.” Jinki proffers his arm so they can continue their peaceful walk. “Thank  _ you.”  _

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Just your run-of-the-mill Olympian and his World Champion friends fucking it up at 3am in the morning  
> I never learned how to do a backflip on the ice, but I am proud to say that I can do a cartwheel into a Double Flip, so that's that.  
> I thought it would be cute to write a little oneshot-esque interlude chapter about the skaters' day off ^_^ I hope you guys like it as well! I feel like I say this in every a/n, but it's always true--Aranee and I had a lot of fun writing this chapter XD I also think the SeHo is super sweet and adorable ;-; they're so fluffy and disgusting, it's great.  
>  ~~notice the part 1 in the title haha yeah that's NOT a tip off that there's going to be a part 2 or anything haha whaaaat~~  
>  Also on another note, have you guys watched the SuperM Knowing Bros episode yet, because it's SO FUNNY :3 Kai does a double rotation to deliver their roster, and I thought it was so cute ;-; ~~but he has a bad habit of being tilted in the air, he really needs to stop swinging himself out of his center of rotation--I am not criticizing my king, don't come for me pls~~  
>  Also ALSOOOO have you seen Taemin's teasers bc he looks ;-; so ;-; damn ;-; GOOD ;-; I just want the album to drop rightthefucknow  
> This a/n has become a diary. I love you guys. Bye :D
> 
> The coaches know what's up, huh? Well, except Kyunsoo XD.
> 
> My sanity is slowly being drained these days by Taemin's teasers. Oh my God, have you seen them? That concept will be the death of me. Then Rare-Taem reality show next week as well! And let's not forget about Tiger Inside because everything has to happen at the same time by the law of SM (lack of) planning. But the Mood samplers for Never Gonna Dance Again are SO GOOD!
> 
> Thank you for reading this small interlude and see you soon <3.


	20. Interlude Pt. 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

>  _Italic_ dialogue is Mandarin Chinese.

Jongin doesn’t get out of bed until eleven. It’s absolutely glorious. Daylight peeks into his room when his body wakes up naturally, and he stretches lazily in bed, feeling refreshed and content. 

“Good morning, sleepyhead,” comes Chanyeol’s greeting when Jongin shuffles out of his room with tufts of hair sticking up at all angles and puffy, sleep-filled eyes. “Fancy seeing you around here at normal human hours.” 

“I think I died a little in my sleep, that’s how good it was,” Jongin yawns and sits down opposite from Chanyeol at the dining table. 

“Proud of you.” Chanyeol pushes his chair back and stands up. “Breakfast? I can do eggs.” 

“I love you,” Jongin declares, which earns him an affectionate pat on the head. While Chanyeol dutifully fulfills his role as The Best Roommate, Jongin pulls out his phone and is surprised to see that Taemin has texted him several times already. Just seeing the notifications on his lock screen brings a smile to Jongin’s face. 

Taemin-ah

Taemin-ah

Good morning~

Ah, maybe you aren’t awake yet… 

ㅋㅋ I woke up out of habit ㅠㅠ

Did you go back to sleep? 

Good morning :D 

To Jongin’s surprise and happiness, Taemin texts back just seconds later. 

Taemin-ah

Taemin-ah

No~

I went on a long run

The weather was so nice… 6v6

Diamond sky ♡

Jongin glances out at the clear blue sky. He gets up from his seat and shuffles closer to the window. Chanyeol looks up from the stove. 

“What are you doing?” Jongin pays him no mind, instead holding his hand up in an ‘OK’ sign to make a diamond shape against the sky. Chanyeol throws him a side eye. “If this is your mating call, it needs work.” 

“Shut.” Jongin takes the picture and hits ‘send’. 

Taemin-ah

img.1485

Like this?

Also. 

It’s our break day… -.-

Taemin-ah

Cute! ㅋㅋㅋㅋ

So pretty~ 💎♡

I didn’t push myself too hard~

Ah, I see

But I don’t trust your version of ‘too hard’ ㅋㅋ

Taemin-ah

ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ

Come with me next time~

Trust me~~ ㅋㅋㅋ

“How can someone be this cute…” Jongin whines to himself while Chanyeol places a bowl of scrambled eggs and fried rice in front of him. 

“What’d he do?” 

“Nothing. His existence is just cute.” 

“I mean, I get that.” Chanyeol sits back down and reaches for his cup of coffee. “Jongdae’s existence is just chaos.” 

“Yeah, exactly. Speaking of which, where is Dae?” Jongin asks while he texts back a reply. 

Taemin-ah

Don’t kill me ㅠㅠ

Taemin-ah

No way

That’s Kibum’s job 

ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ

ALDSFKAJW

Taemin-ah

ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ 

Don’t tell him I said that~

Said what? 

;) 

“Probably in his room vegetating,” Chanyeol informs Jongin. “He gets up at a decent time, but doesn’t leave his room for shit until like, 2.” 

“What about food?” Jongin asks incredulously. 

“What do you think he bought that mini-fridge for last year?” Chanyeol snorts and Jongin sighs exasperatedly. 

“Should we get him?” 

“Yeah, probably.” Chanyeol stands up. “Text the cute boy, I’ll drag him out.” 

“Kay.” Jongin turns back to his phone. 

Taemin-ah

Taemin-ah

Did you see the picture Minho-hyung sent into the group chat?

ㅋㅋ it’s so funny ㅋㅋ

The one with Kyuhyun and Changmin sunbaes on top of him???

Taemin-ah

Looks like it 6v6

Timestamp ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ

Did they even SLEEP?

HOW DID THEY GET IN?

Oh wait, Jinki-hyung has the key

Taemin-ah

Jinki-hyung

Yes ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ

It kind of looks fun… 

Taemin-ah

Yes 6v6

Next time we should go~

If we get caught, we’ll just blame it on Minho-hyung’s bad influence 

XDDD

Taemin-ah

ㅋㅋㅋㅋ

It’s a plan \\(^o^)/

Jongin’s smile is so wide that it hurts his cheeks. Taemin is so cute. His texting is so cute. He can practically hear Taemin’s voice, all low and sweet, asking Jongin to do all these things with him. As if Jongin is his best friend; as if Jongin was the person he thought of first. As if there’s nobody else he would rather go on a run, hang out, and be mischievous with. Jongin passes a hand through his messy hair, futilely trying to pat it down while he grins down at his phone like an idiot. 

Maybe he should ask Taemin if he wants to do something together today. Grab lunch together, take a walk in the park. Maybe they can take the bus into the city and wander around. A day out with Taemin. _Like a date._ Jongin’s heart flutters excitedly, and his fingers move to type out the question. But before he can do so, Taemin’s latest text message slides in, and the pout that settles on Jongin’s face is most definitely one of utter petulance. 

Taemin-ah

Taemin-ah

I’m off now~

Going to do a late-morning ice session~~

On our break day? 

Taemin-ah… ㅠㅠ

Taemin-ah

Taemin-ah

Not too difficult~ 

Taemin-ah… -.-

Taemin-ah

ㅋㅋㅋㅋ

Do you want to come? 

Feel free~

Jongin doesn’t even have to think about this one. Yes; Lee Taemin is the cutest boy on the planet. Yes; Jongin’s whipped as hell. Yes; skating an extra session might mean private time with Taemin, and maybe even a post-practice excursion. But Jongin would rather go without all of that than voluntarily choose to give up his one glorious day of freedom. 

Taemin-ah

Not… really… 

I lowkey wanna go back to sleep… 

Taemin-ah

ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ

Okay~~

Have fun…

.-.

Taemin-ah

ㅋㅋㅋ it will give me something to do

I have to go now

If you need me, I’ll be at the rink~

While Jongin had expressed his doubts about the enjoyableness of voluntarily giving up a free day, when Jonghyun catches sight of Taemin dressed in practice attire, looking like he has someplace to go, he barely bats an eyelash. 

“Wait just a minute, Taem.” The young skater turns around. 

“You don’t have to come.” But Jonghyun is already heading off into his room to grab a jacket. 

The rink is inevitably empty when both of them arrive; Taemin cracks a small smile at the smooth, unblemished ice surface when he peers through the windows at the rink. 

“They did an ice cut,” Taemin giggles to Jonghyun. “I thought I might have to skate around Minho-hyung’s giant toe pick gouges in the ice.” 

“It’s nice that you don’t have to, though,” Jonghyun smiles while Taemin drops his suitcase beside his feet near one of the benches in the lobby. No point in using the locker rooms when he has the whole facility to himself. Jonghyun sits down next to Taemin’s things while the skater does his customary run around the building, then goes through his stretching and off-ice rotations. 

“Snap quicker.” Jonghyun’s comment echoes a little around the lobby when Taemin pops a Quadruple rotation. “Arms need to pull in faster.” Taemin doesn’t answer; not verbally, anyway. But on his next attempt, he cleanly rotates the jump and hops around on one foot to imitate a landing position. “Better.” Jonghyun nods, more to himself than anyone else. The elder waits and watches Taemin lace up his skates with sharp, efficient movements. “I used to tie your skates.” Taemin’s hands fumble with the laces of his right skate and miss the hook. 

“Yeah, you did.” Taemin’s movements slow down just the tiniest bit. “I couldn’t tie them tight enough.” 

“I watched so many YouTube videos to figure out how to do it,” Jonghyun admits. “I didn’t know how tight they were supposed to be.” He watches while Taemin finishes lacing up his right skate, then stands up and shakes his legs out. Gloves, skate guards, extra jacket. Taemin doesn’t bring a water bottle onto the sideboards since he never takes a break anyway. Jonghyun knows this routine like it's his own. He sits down in the bleachers and watches Taemin take fast, powerful laps around the rink. Thin white lines made from the edges of Taemin’s blade appear one by one on the ice; long and curvy when Taemin holds a glide; short and deep when he turns. As Jonghyun gazes out at Taemin, he can almost see the exact moment when Taemin catches the rhythm and connection of his movements. After a few laps, Taemin’s shoulders relax, and he seems to sink deeper into the ice with each exercise. His raven-black hair flies in and out of his face depending on if he’s skating forwards or backwards, sometimes clouding his vision, but the skater takes it into stride. Heavy, half-lidded eyes, outstretched fingertips, and endlessly undulating movements. Taemin doesn’t need to see where he’s going to know that he’s reached the end of one side of the rink. He knows just how deep the bend in his knee needs to be to create the most perfect shape with his body, clothed in black and sharp against the white of the ice. There’s no melody playing through the loudspeakers of the rink, but Taemin doesn’t need one to keep count. The _rip_ of edges cutting through smooth ice says _one, two, three;_ then Taemin executes a rocker-turn on _four._ Hold on _five, six, seven,_ and turn forwards on _eight._ Skating infinite laps around the rink lulls Taemin into a place of control and concentration. He can feel it; Jonghyun can see it. Without any words, both of them know the practice will be a good one. 

Whenever Jonghyun used to watch over Taemin’s practices, he would only catch glimpses of a small, skinny boy in skates that almost seemed too big for his body, then a stumble, and a fall. People in plastic blue rental skates constantly wobbled past the plexiglass boards, making it difficult to see Taemin’s every movement. Jonghyun couldn’t stand at the entrance of the rink and have long, drawn out conversations about technique fixes. They didn’t understand each other when they tried to mouth words through the pane of plexiglass separating them. And shouting above the shrieks of public skaters and noisy music was a definite no-go. So Taemin would get up, dust the snow off his pants, and without even looking at Jonghyun, draw a small circle with his right hand. _Trying again._ Taemin got five attempts; on the fifth fall, he would look over at Jonghyun with a frustrated pout on his face. The elder would glance down at his notebook with all his notes on technique, and signal to Taemin what he thought was wrong. ‘ _Your timing is off’_ was a simple tap on the wrist where a watch could lay. _‘Pull into position faster’--_ Jonghyun would snap his fingers. _Cheated jump. Tighter air position. You need speed. That looks weird. More expression. Straighten your leg. Good job._ Taemin would ask questions too, if he thought something was off. _Am I tilted in the air? Was that clean? What GOE would you give that spin?_ Bit by bit, one messy practice at a time, they built a system of communication. Sometimes, it was so efficient that all Jonghyun needed to do was raise a hand to start the movement, and Taemin would finish it on the other side of the glass. Other days, the skater would become so annoyed at himself for not understanding that he simply skated away to fume about his technique on his own. 

When they made the move to Kibum, Jonghyun stopped signaling. There was no need to do so, not with three incredible coaches by Taemin’s side, constantly correcting him, fixing this and fixing that. But Jonghyun never stopped watching. The urge to do so is ingrained in him; he instinctively thinks about what he would signal if Taemin happened to look up at him in the stands, nods to himself when he sees Kyungsoo correcting Taemin, and even feels frustration as Taemin becomes distressed, as if he would do any better if he owned a pair of skates. As if he could go out there and land the jump for Taemin. Knowing the theory, but not how to execute it, sometimes aggravated Jonghyun to no end. 

For years now, Taemin has fallen into the habit of not looking up at the stands. As he’d improved, he had learned to correct himself if things went awry on solo practices. But today feels different; maybe because of Jonghyun’s comment back in the lobby, maybe because it’s been so long since he’s had an entire rink to himself. Still in the last stages of his warm-up phase, Taemin lands Triple Salchow, Toe, Loop, Flip, and Lutz. Then he glances up at Jonghyun. The elder moves almost subconsciously, as if he’s not really thinking about what he’s doing. He holds up four fingers, then snaps his fingers twice. 

_Make sure you get more speed when you try Quads._

The comment is so unnecessary. Of course Taemin knows he has to increase his momentum in order to get another rotation in for his jumps. But instead of correcting himself today, he lets Jonghyun’s message lead him while he skates backwards into Quad Salchow. The sound of toe picks digging into the ice and scratching the surface from his takeoff is still echoing around the rink when he lands on his right foot, sending up a spray of snow and ice. Taemin looks up to where Jonghyun sits again, and receives an ‘okay’ sign. _Nice job. Clean._ Taemin rolls his eyes when he skates closer to the bleachers. _Duh. I know._ Jonghyun’s sudden laugh reverberates around the stadium, trailing after Taemin while he lands another Quad Salchow. 

“It’s a lot easier to correct you now,” Jonghyun tells Taemin after three hours of near-flawless practice. “Not as complicated.” 

“Hyung, have I improved?” Taemin asks suddenly, looking up from methodically untying the laces of his skate. The elder meets Taemin’s eyes. They’re not at all teasing or mischievous. 

“Yes,” Jonghyun tells his little skater. “You’ve improved so much.” Taemin lets out a small huff of breath when he hears those words. He knows why practice felt so different today. There was no pressure. Exchanging messages, mindless jumping, losing himself in choreography. These were things Taemin left behind the first time he stepped onto a Nationals podium, or attended a press conference, or received his Team Korea jacket. Now, practices are about perfecting things for the next competition. They’re recorded, analyzed, and picked apart. Every skater, not just Taemin, does their best to redirect their focus to their technique rather than their expectations. But it always hangs over their heads like a looming cloud. Today, Jonghyun’s corrections had washed all of that pressure away. For a few hours, there wasn’t anything but the pure, untainted feeling of practicing; no obligations or expectations attached. Today felt like old times, when Taemin stayed on the ice until he lost track of time, or when he would spend hours just doing one jump over and over again. Jonghyun’s words strike deep into Taemin’s heart. The elder never has, or will, place any of that administrative pressure on Taemin’s shoulders. He is there for Taemin, and Taemin only. What Taemin wants to practice; how he wants to practice; when he wants to practice. Jonghyun doesn’t judge Taemin’s success by how many medals and trophies pile up in their apartment, or how many Team Korea jackets hang in the skater’s closet. Taemin’s happiness is his success. If Jonghyun tells Taemin he’s improved, it’s not because Taemin has countless accolades on his official ISU biography. It’s because he no longer needs to tell Taemin to get speed before a Quad. The feeling of nostalgia hits the young skater like a wave, and he even feels the slight sting of tears in his nose. 

“Thank you, hyung.” 

Yixing anxiously messes with his hair in the mirror while the clock ticks closer and closer to eight. As soon as Kibum had announced they were to be freed from responsibility for a day, he had texted Baekhyun. His boyfriend’s current tournament, Rift Rivals, pits teams of different Asian leagues against each other. SKT lost their game yesterday, but the rest of the Korean teams did so well that they managed to advance straight to the final round; Baekhyun had replied that while he’d be busy watching the semi-final with his team for most of today, they could meet up in person that night. Yixing’s pretty sure it’s going to be a casual, snuggly, Netflix and chill kind of date, which he’s more than happy about, but he’s still undecided on whether to leave his hair as is or comb his bangs off of his forehead. In the end, he decides to leave it. Then he gets stuck on deciding which t-shirt he should wear. Is this what he gets for being a Libra? Decisions are so difficult. This is why he makes Minseok choose his music every year--except for his LoL soundtrack short program this season. When it comes to his cute gamer, Yixing never wavers. 

Yixing’s apartment is in close vicinity to the rink, only about five minutes away from Minho and Jinki. Baekhyun lives closer to Jongin, who is further away than most of the other skaters because of his university roommates. During the short bus ride and walk to Baekhyun’s apartment, Yixing’s heart begins to quicken in anticipation of seeing his boyfriend. It’s been a couple months since they became official, but despite all that time, they’ve only gone on two or three dates. Definitely not the best way to start a relationship, but Yixing is grateful that Baekhyun understands, and heavily empathizes with busy schedules and zero downtime. If it had been anyone else, Yixing probably would have had to deal with all the usual ‘you don’t have time for me’ arguments. Not that he was looking for anyone else in the first place. Up until he’d met Baekhyun, he had always treated his time in Korea as precious training time during the competitive season. Yixing maintains a one-track mind whenever he is overseas: Skate. Work out. Sleep. Repeat. He doesn’t have time for relationships or exploring the city. His only friends are his teammates, and that’s because he sees them everyday. Baekhyun changed all of that--or at the very least, he definitely shook Yixing’s perspective a little. Yixing finds himself pining now, wishing he could end a long day of training by holding his boyfriend in his arms. Korea is starting to feel less administrative in general, and a little more like a second home. Yixing knocks on Baekhyun’s door, and not two seconds later, it’s flung open by a shy but eager boy in an SKT T1 team t-shirt (typical) and sweatpants (also typical). 

“终于见到宝贝了,” Yixing chirps just as Baekhyun murmurs a happy greeting. He looks tired, but a wide smile lights up his entire face. _I finally get to see my darling again._

“Xing-xing,” Baekhyun coos, stepping aside and gesturing Yixing across the threshold. “Is it just me, or do you get more handsome every time?” 

“I stay same…” Yixing blushes anyway while toeing off his shoes. “Missed you, baobei.” Yixing holds his arms out expectantly, and laughs internally when Baekhyun’s expression turns from one of crass confidence to bashfulness. 

Baekhyun practically melts when he wraps his arms around Yixing’s thin waist and squeezes lightly. It’s been so long since they last held each other… the familiar scent of clean cotton and mandarin oranges surrounds him, and the gamer loses himself in the soothing presence of his boyfriend. 

“How are you?” Yixing whispers, dropping a kiss in Baekhyun’s hair just because he can. The younger doesn’t answer for a few heartbeats. “Baobei?” 

“Huh?” Baekhyun looks up at Yixing, and the skater can’t help it. One of his hands comes up to cup Baekhyun’s cheek and strokes along his sharp cheekbone. 

“Can I kiss you?” 

“You…” Baekhyun looks like he has difficulty breathing from their proximity. “Don’t needtoask,” he rushes out in one breath. Every point of contact is startling warm and gentle. It makes Baekhyun nervous and excited at the same time. God, he’s really been starved of human contact for way too long. Yixing’s breath smells like fresh mint when he leans closer and closes the distance between their lips. Baekhyun forgets what little he knows about kissing. Yixing is such a good kisser that Baekhyun short-circuits every single time. Baekhyun’s already starting to feel all hot and bothered by the time Yixing reluctantly pulls away, unsure of what limits there are tonight. 

“We can take slow,” Yixing promises, even though there’s an adorable boy standing in front of him with both arms clasped around his waist. Baekhyun’s hair is a soft brown, and it hangs low to cover half of his droopy eyes which look up at Yixing prettily. His mouth is still slightly parted and shining red from their kiss. Yixing feels a rush of something tightening in his gut, but wills it down. He will not push Baekhyun for anything he’s not ready for. 

“Uh… yeah…” Baekhyun tries his words once he gets his breath back. “Yeah, we, we can just chill.” Baekhyun cringes at himself for sounding so dumb. “I didn’t really plan anything.”

“Just catch up?” Yixing suggests, and Baekhyun nods. 

“We can do that,” he murmurs. “I missed you.” 

“You, too--wait--me, too--” Yixing blinks confusedly as he tries to reciprocate the sentiment. “You? Me?” 

“You missed me, too?” A shade of Baekhyun’s smirk finds its way back into his expression. “I know you can’t resist me.” 

“Can’t,” Yixing agrees. 

“Tongue-tied?” Baekhyun grins and takes one of Yixing’s hands in his own, leading him further into his cluttered apartment. “Issok. Happens all the time, I’m used to it.” Yixing laughs while Baekhyun winks at him endearingly. “Do you want something to drink? Water? Juice? Soda?” 

“Just water is okay.” Yixing takes a seat on the edge of Baekhyun’s couch and accepts a glass of water gratefully from the younger man. “Thank you.” 

“It’s no problem.” Baekhyun pops the tab of his soda open and takes a sip before setting it on the coffee table in front. His eyes flick to the space right next to Yixing, but his body moves to sit down a safe distance away from his boyfriend. The audacity. Yixing reaches out for his wrist and pulls him closer. 

“Come here?” Yixing’s smile makes his dimple deepen into his cheek adorably. Baekhyun’s heart goes wild. 

“Oh! O-okay.” Baekhyun hates himself. He’s acting like they’re an awkward middle school couple on a supervised date. 

“没事的,” Yixing murmurs, draping an arm around Baekhyun’s shoulders and leaning forward to kiss the younger’s temple. “It’s okay. You are cute.” 

“No, you.” Baekhyun shyly leans into Yixing’s embrace. His heart rate hasn’t dropped ever since Yixing entered his house. The skater is even cuter in person, cuter than his selcas and self-recorded skating videos. His voice is deeper and sweeter than in his voice messages. It may also have something to do with the way Baekhyun can feel the firm, sculpted planes of Yixing’s upper body at every point of contact, and the way Yixing pulls him closer even when they’re already pressed together. 

“I’m gonna die,” Baekhyun mutters under his breath, surreptitiously pressing a sweaty palm to his own chest. 

“Hmm?” Yixing busies himself with brushing Baekhyun’s bangs out of his eyes. He seems relaxed and at ease, despite Baekhyun’s awkwardness. “You are tense.” 

“I--” Baekhyun is at a loss of words, and if Yixing knew the right jargon, he probably would have teased Baekhyun mercilessly. _Who’s tongue-tied now, hmm?_

“Tell me about your game,” Yixing prompts gently, and this--Baekhyun can do this. He can talk about League. 

“We lost yesterday,” Baekhyun begins somewhat frustratedly. “We were the only Korean team to lose. We had the last game, all we needed was a win to secure a perfect record for LCK (League of Legends Champions Korea) in the group stage. Just like we broke their perfect record last time, now they broke ours. The worst thing is that I didn’t even deliver a bad Azir, but in team fights I was the only one doing damage. I’ve seen they are calling it a 1v9 online. It was such a back and force, like in old times. We rarely have games like this these days. I really thought I could carry us through, but Camille was a really bad last pick against Neeko. In retrospect, we thought he’d go AP but we ended up losing the lane so badly instead. Why wasn’t this a best of 5…” As Baekhyun chats, he also loosens up, relaxing into Yixing’s embrace and even turning towards Yixing a bit more to shyly wrap his left arm around his boyfriend’s waist. His head drops somewhere in between Yixing’s chest and shoulder. Yixing’s hand traces Baekhyun’s upper arm absentmindedly, and he hums at all of Baekhyun’s chatter about their thought process and tactics of the previous game. 

“They’ll probably ban Azir tomorrow after what I did yesterday,” Baekhyun chuckles to himself. “We talked about this today and I might have some fun with Neeko tomorrow, they won’t expect that. Don’t tell anyone, please. It’s just one game again, we can’t repeat yesterday. I hope we can surprise everyone. Argh, Khan should have snowballed AP Neeko with Camille pretty hard--sorry, I’m ranting.” Baekhyun catches himself before he puts his boyfriend to sleep out of boredom. “Sorry, you probably don’t care.” 

“No,” Yixing shakes his head instantly. “宝贝，没事。真的。一点都不无聊。” _Baobei, it’s totally fine. It’s not boring at all._

“What?” Baekhyun giggles a little at the foreign words. “You’re adorable when you speak Mandarin. It sounds so cute.” 

“Interesting,” Yixing translates simply. “You forget I am your fan, too.” 

“Oh.” Baekhyun’s so smitten. A guy who’s uber-hot, likes League, and is hella talented? He’s so gone. “You’re just a dream, aren’t you?” Baekhyun tilts his head up and puts on his best flirty expression, the one he uses on camera after a particularly good play. A mischievous bite of his lips, and batting eyelashes--Yixing kisses him. It’s much less reserved this time, with Yixing’s wet, warm tongue tracing Baekhyun’s bottom lip enticingly, requesting permission to ruin his boyfriend. Baekhyun is powerless to resist. Yixing’s hand cups the nape of Baekhyun’s neck almost posessively, then moves upwards to gently bury itself in Baekhyun’s soft brown locks. As for Baekhyun, his hand is curled into a fist, holding onto Yixing’s shirt. The skater’s lips move rhythmically against Baekhyun’s, setting a slow, steady, but infuriatingly teasing rhythm that leaves Baekhyun thrumming with want. Everything feels so good; after all, it’s been weeks since they’ve seen each other. Every touch, every caress riles Baekhyun up. Yixing’s movements are more self-assured, but Baekhyun can feel the way his hands shake as he tries to control his emotions so as to not scare the gamer. They’re both overexcited, pent up, obsessed. When Yixing nibbles Baekhyun’s lower lip and sucks gently, a tiny moan makes its way out of Baekhyun’s throat before he can stop himself.

 _“God, that’s so cute,”_ Yixing whispers, drawing away a little, but only because Baekhyun has turned his face to the side to blush furiously. “It’s okay, baobei. It’s okay,” he reassures the gamer. “Really okay.” 

“I,” Baekhyun gulps in a breath to clear his head. It doesn’t help. 

Warning: Explicit Content  
Scroll to the next red box if you want to skip explicit content and only read the mature summary.

“What do you want?” Yixing whispers, looking tenderly into Baekhyun’s eyes, ignoring his half-hard dick stirring against the constraints of his jeans. “We can stop. I’m, uh, I’m sorry if it is too much--” 

“No,” Baekhyun blurts out, eyebrows creasing together at just the thought. He has no idea where he gets the courage, not with his heart still trying to escape his ribcage, and his mouth still feeling the ghost of the pressure of Yixing’s lips. But he glances down, then up through his eyelashes and heavy hooded eyes like he would at a camera. “Don’t leave me hanging, Xing-xing.” Yixing physically trembles against Baekhyun with the effort it takes to keep from absolutely ravaging him. 

_“You’re a little minx.”_ Yixing’s Mandarin is dark, sultry. Baekhyun shivers. _“You know exactly what you’re doing.”_

“I have no idea what you’re saying,” Baekhyun whispers while Yixing’s hand creeps towards the hem of Baekhyun’s shirt; the gamer does his utmost to ignore it, otherwise he’ll never get the words out. “But it’s hot as fuck.” Yixing sighs shakily and closes the distance between their lips again, only this time, he turns himself towards Baekhyun’s chest and braces himself over the younger as he lowers Baekhyun down to lie on the couch. Molten lava flows straight to Baekhyun’s crotch at their compromising position, at Yixing’s lips mouthing insistently at his, at the skater’s hands skimming the skin just under the hem of his shirt--he’s going to explode. He whimpers into Yixing’s mouth; there are so many good feelings and they’re just piling on top of each other relentlessly. 

_“So beautiful,”_ Yixing keeps murmuring, hands now bracketing Baekhyun’s waist, feeling smooth, warm skin under his calloused palms and fingertips. _“So cute._ Tell me… if you want me stop,” Yixing murmurs, nibbling at Baekhyun’s earlobe. “Is okay.” 

“Don’t,” Baekhyun breathes out, arching his neck and letting out a little gasp of pleasure when Yixing’s lips attach to his neck and nibble lightly. Holy fuck, if Yixing actually leaves a hickey, his teammates are going to lose their shit. Are hickeys actually a thing? Can people really make them? He doesn’t know what to do with his hands. If Yixing wants him to reciprocate, he’s going to have to be a little less sexy. “Ahh,” Baekhyun moans lowly when Yixing licks and kisses down the side of Baekhyun’s neck, then nibbles at the dip of his collarbone. “Mmm--” He’s been reduced to a pathetic, trembling mess just from a few kisses and touches.

“You can touch me,” Yixing directs gently, but not patronizingly. He reaches for Baekhyun’s hand and kisses his knuckles lightly before raising it up to bracket his waist. Baekhyun covers his eyes with his other forearm and turns his head slightly to the side in embarrassment. He can’t; all of this is so new, he’s so sensitive. Yixing hasn’t even touched him yet, but he’s so hard--soft lips press against his cheek, his nose, and his jawline. 

“Baobei, baobei,” Yixing murmurs, infinitely patient until Baekhyun musters up the courage to peek at Yixing. “Are you comfortable?” Yixing asks, kissing Baekhyun’s chin. His arms are starting to tremble from the effort of holding himself up, and the gamer starts to feel a little bad. “Do you want move?” Yixing tilts his head slightly in the direction of Baekhyun’s bedroom. 

“How… how…” Baekhyun’s voice is hoarse. He clears his throat and tries again. “How far are we going?” 

“To… your room?” Yixing’s pretty sure he misunderstood. Baekhyun’s little amused smile confirms his suspicions. 

“Sorry. I meant… like… us.” Baekhyun’s too shy to say the words. “I don’t know what you… had in mind… I’m sorry, I’m doing a really bad job of explaining.” 

“Oh. Oh!” It clicks. “What you want,” Yixing is quick to reassure his boyfriend. “When you say stop, I stop. But I think… should move… this is not polite.” Yixing gestures at them sprawled out across the couch. Baekhyun melts. 

“Such a gentleman,” the younger murmurs, and Yixing chuckles embarrassedly. 

“Come here,” Yixing helps Baekhyun to his feet, then leads him to his own bedroom by the hand. Baekhyun is shy and blushing, unsure of where to look or how to act, but Yixing treats him gently, brushing his hair back from his face and stroking his thumb over Baekhyun’s hand reassuringly. When they reach the bedroom, Yixing turns to face Baekhyun. His hands land on Baekhyun’s waist and creep underneath Baekhyun’s shirt. “Can I?” Yixing asks, thumbs drawing little circles just above Baekhyun’s hipbone. The gamer shivers. 

“Yeah,” Baekhyun nods assent, staring down at the ground. Bad idea, because he immediately fixates on the bulge in Yixing’s jeans. Poor guy must be so uncomfortable, Baekhyun thinks for just a second before Yixing’s hands crawl under his shirt, bunching it up in the process. Baekhyun freezes on the spot, and Yixing stops immediately. 

“Sorry.” Baekhyun apologizes instinctively, ashamed. 

“No,” Yixing croons, stepping closer. Baekhyun buries his face in the crook of Yixing’s shoulder in embarrassment. “Baobei, it is okay,” Yixing says for the umpteenth time that night. 

“I want this,” Baekhyun feels the need to explain himself, and does so haltingly. “I just--it’s new, I don’t know--I’ve never--” 

“Okay.” Yixing nods a little to show he understands. His hands find Baekhyun’s and close around them to place them at the hem of his own shirt. “Take my shirt off,” Yixing whispers, kissing the top of his boyfriend’s head. He’s leading Baekhyun through the actions, one simple task at a time. Baekhyun takes a deep, steadying breath, then leans slightly away from Yixing as he moves the shirt higher, exposing--fuck, that’s a six-pack. Baekhyun will die. It’s so pretty in real life, expanding and contracting with Yixing’s even breath. Yixing fights a laugh when he spots Baekhyun’s expression, and does his best not to preen. The discarded shirt is tossed to the floor carelessly. 

“Now what?” is what Baekhyun means to say, but it comes out more as a strangled whimper. Yixing takes Baekhyun’s hand again and places it against his chest. 

“Touch me,” Yixing encourages while his other hand slips under Baekhyun’s shirt. A bold request. Baekhyun has been rendered completely useless by the Pretty Abs and Ripped Arms. Yixing huffs out a small breath of laughter while he works Baekhyun’s t-shirt off of him, then gathers the younger up in his arms. Baekhyun squeaks as his bare chest presses against hot, firm skin and muscle. His erection bumps up against Yixing’s as well, and he can’t help but subconsciously buck into the contact.

“Hhh--” 

_“Baobei,”_ Yixing’s voice is low again, and his eyes sparkle with affection and desire. _“Do you like what you see?”_

“I have no idea,” Baekhyun shakes his head helplessly, too shy to meet Yixing’s eyes; instead, he stares at Yixing’s collarbone. 

_“I’ll take good care of you,”_ Yixing murmurs, walking Baekhyun back towards the bed until his knees hit the side and he crumples onto the mattress. “Do not be afraid,” Yixing whispers before he kisses Baekhyun. They make out for a little while, with Yixing running his hands all over Baekhyun’s chest, and Baekhyun’s hands just resting on the ridges of Yixing’s abs, occasionally shifting once in a while to feel them tense up and become more defined. The skater’s hand drifts towards Baekhyun’s sweatpants, then stops right before he touches the bulge. 

“Is okay?” Yixing checks in; Baekhyun nods, flushed pink and beside himself with need. So much teasing. Baekhyun can’t enable himself, and Yixing takes things far too slowly. He needs to be touched, even if the thought makes him freeze in nervous anticipation. A wanton moan falls from his lips the second Yixing grips his length through the fabric of sweatpants and gives him a few firm strokes. “Feel good?” Yixing whispers, enraptured with Baekhyun’s expression. He already looks so blissed out; Yixing is almost jealous. His own erection is begging to be freed, pressing viciously against the tight constraints of his jeans. All of Baekhyun’s easy reactions send jolts of arousal straight to Yixing’s crotch, where it remains painfully neglected. 

“I--” Baekhyun’s hips buck up, trying to get Yixing’s hand to go under the clothing. Not that it would be good for his ego. He’s already about two seconds away from exploding. 

“More?” Yixing whispers, playing with the head of Baekhyun’s cock. Baekhyun moans and turns his head into his sheets. He’s so sensitive. 

“Ye-yes,” Baekhyun’s breath hitches. 

_“If you touch me, you won’t cum as fast,”_ Yixing murmurs. “Distraction.” 

“Wha…?” Baekhyun opens his eyes as he registers a loss of sensation to see Yixing fumbling with the zipper of his jeans. Shit. He’s so selfish. “Sorry, babe, I--” 

“No apology,” Yixing murmurs, letting out a quiet sigh of relief when he unzips his fly. “About you.” He leans forward and settles himself on top of Baekhyun, engulfing the younger with the warmth and solidity of his body. Baekhyun’s breath hitches at the sensation, and his eyelids flutter as Yixing subtly grinds their clothed erections together. His hips push up against Yixing’s unconsciously, and the skater exhales deeply into the nape of Baekhyun’s neck. 

“Good,” Yixing whispers, nibbling at Baekhyun’s earlobe. The younger’s hands are curled into a gentle fist, trapped in between their two bodies, but now, Baekhyun uncurls them to lie flat against Yixing’s warm skin. They venture upwards over his broad shoulders, then down to feel the swell of biceps as Yixing holds him, occasionally pressing kisses to his lips, face, anywhere that he can reach. Baekhyun’s pretty sure that he’s died and gone to heaven. The friction between them increases until Baekhyun can’t take it anymore. 

“Xing,” Baekhyun stutters. 

“Hmm?” Yixing murmurs in between kisses. Baekhyun smells like strawberry body wash and tastes just as sweet. He writhes under Yixing’s touch, whines whenever Yixing’s thumbs brush up against his nipples and play with them just a little while they grind up against each other. “What you need?” Baekhyun can neither force the words out of his throat nor show what he wants; instead, he arches up into Yixing’s hands and presence. Yixing hums, then to Baekhyun’s dismay, pulls away slightly. The skater catches sight of Baekhyun’s expression, and immediately cups his cheek. “我不走。 _I’m not leaving._ Come here, Baekkie.” Yixing scoots up further onto the bed, props himself up against Baekhyun’s pillows, then tugs Baekhyun to straddle his lap. The younger promptly buries his face in the crook of Yixing’s neck. Safe, dark, comforting. “Ah, wait,” Yixing murmurs, fumbling with the hem of Baekhyun’s sweatpants. “This is… what you want? Yes?” Baekhyun’s hair tickles Yixing’s neck as he nods, and Yixing sucks in a breath. _“Of course you wanna hide there,”_ Yixing murmurs. His hand dips into the waistband of Baekhyun’s pants and slips past the elastic of his underwear as well. He’s hard. Wet at the tip. Sensitive. Baekhyun lets out a soft, breathy moan against Yixing’s neck and trembles. He’s not going to last. 

_“Breathe, breathe,”_ Yixing murmurs, stroking Baekhyun’s hair softly with his other hand. _“You’re so turned on, baobei.”_ He doesn’t ask for any reciprocation, even though his own cock aches listening to Baekhyun’s little mewls of approval. So he startles in surprise when he feels the tips of Baekhyun’s fingers pressing against his underwear tentatively, as if they’re not allowed to be there. “Okay,” Yixing encourages Baekhyun. “Go ahead. Is fine. One second--” his hand comes out of Baekhyun’s sweatpants, and the younger shuffles shyly off of his lap so Yixing can tug his jeans and underwear off. Baekhyun’s eyes dart around nervously, unsure of where to look, but Yixing pulls Baekhyun closer to him and kisses him lightly. 

“Are you okay?” Yixing asks gently, nonplussed about being totally naked in front of Baekhyun even though the gamer looks like he’s about to collapse at any second. 

“It’s…” Baekhyun releases a breath he didn’t even know he was holding, and jumps as Yixing’s fingertips dip below the elastic of his waistband again. “Just… a lot,” he makes out. The skater’s smile is equal parts comforting and amused. 

“So cute,” Yixing croons while Baekhyun buries himself against Yixing’s chest. One of his hands creeps down Yixing’s chest, and makes contact with the tip of his cock. Yixing’s breath hitches in his throat, which seems to reassure Baekhyun. He takes a deep breath to steady himself, exhales hot on Yixing’s skin, then timidly wraps his fingers around Yixing’s length. The skater gasps quietly as his own hand disappears back into Baekhyun’s sweatpants. The angle at which he strokes Baekhyun is a bit awkward, and the slide would be much smoother if they had bothered with lube, but Baekhyun still whimpers into Yixing’s chest as he does his best to reciprocate the feelings of pleasure radiating through his entire body. He has no idea how he’s doing, if he’s gripping too loose or too tight for Yixing’s liking, but the skater doesn’t complain, and his breaths are uneven as he peppers kisses on Baekhyun’s bare shoulder and everywhere else he can reach. The weight of Yixing’s cock sits heavy in Baekhyun’s hand, soft yet firm. Yixing pays particular attention to Baekhyun’s frenulum, rubbing the pad of his thumb up and down in that one spot that made Baekhyun cum last time. 

“Xing,” Baekhyun whines after less than a minute. His keens become higher in pitch, and it seems as if the muscles in his body are clenched in anticipation. 

_“Going to cum?”_ Yixing whispers, all sweet and sultry into Baekhyun’s ear. 

“Xing,” Baekhyun’s voice drops several octaves, and he lets out a long, shuddering moan as he cums into Yixing’s hand and his own sweatpants. The hand on Yixing’s cock falters, but Yixing wraps his free one around Baekhyun’s to continue the rhythm. The younger’s moans, the warmth of their bodies pressed together, and the soft pressure on his cock are enough to make Yixing follow shortly thereafter. His head tilts back in the pillows and his lips part slightly; Baekhyun watches shyly, entranced at the way Yixing’s breathing stutters, making his abs tense up beautifully as the skater cums. 

“Baobei,” Yixing murmurs as soon as he comes down from his high. They’re both sweaty and covered in cum, but Yixing still nuzzles his head into Baekhyun’s hair when the younger falls into his chest tiredly and closes his eyes. They simply lay against each other for a little while, ignoring the feeling of drying cum for as long as they can until Baekhyun shifts and winces. 

“Gross,” Baekhyun mutters, earning a chuckle from Yixing. The younger awkwardly heaves himself out of the bed and waddles into the bathroom. Yixing lies there for a little while, but startles in surprise when the bathroom door opens again after mere seconds. “Here.” Baekhyun hands Yixing a damp towel with averted eyes. 

“Thank you.” Yixing smiles in bemusement. They’ll get there someday. He cleans himself up, tucks himself back into his jeans, then, because he’s sure Baekhyun is feeling awkward in the bathroom, rummages around Baekhyun’s drawers for a clean pair of clothes for him. It’s the gamer’s turn to be surprised when Yixing knocks on the door and hands the clothes over without a word. 

“Thank you,” Baekhyun murmurs. His eyes meet Yixing’s shyly; the skater shows off his dimple. When Baekhyun comes back out, Yixing is sitting on the corner of Baekhyun’s bed, but he stands up when he sees the younger. 

Explicit Content End  
Yixing leads Baekhyun to his bedroom where shirts get lost. Baekhyun is shy, but they both take care of each other with their hands.

“I don’t want you to go,” Baekhyun whispers as Yixing embraces him. Who knows how long it’ll be before they see each other again. 

“Don’t want to go,” Yixing agrees, cupping Baekhyun’s cheeks in his hands and kissing his forehead ever so gently. “Did you have fun?” Yixing whispers with a hint of a teasing lilt in his voice. Baekhyun flushes slightly and nods. “Good.” 

“I…” Baekhyun sighs. “I almost want to ask you to stay the night…” he says quietly, and Yixing’s heart skips a beat. “It’s late.” Baekhyun’s eyes meet Yixing’s with genuine concern. “I don’t want to make you leave.” 

“I have practice tomorrow,” Yixing murmurs. “And you compete.” 

“Yeah. I know.” Baekhyun puts on a cute pout. “Busy day.” 

“Always.” Yixing nods emphatically, taking Baekhyun’s hands in his own and walking backwards towards the front door. Their connected hands swing between them, and Yixing stops suddenly when they’re back in the living room and kitchen area. 

“Babe?” Baekhyun halts as well. 

“Dance with me?” Yixing asks; Baekhyun laughs nervously. 

“I don’t… dance.” 

“Come here.” Yixing pulls Baekhyun in so their chests touch. “Step on me.” 

“Damn, babe, didn’t know you liked it like that.” 

“No, I--what?” Yixing’s brows furrow while Baekhyun bursts into laughter. 

“Nothing.” Baekhyun steps onto Yixing’s socked feet, and wraps his arms around Yixing’s neck. Yixing steals a kiss before securing his hands around Baekhyun’s hips, then begins turning little circles with Baekhyun holding onto him. The younger laughs into Yixing’s chest, clinging on tightly while the skater even sways a little to the imaginary beat. It’s dark outside and it’s back to the usual hectic training tomorrow, but for now, Yixing indulges in having his boyfriend all to himself. Days like these are hard to come by. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It's been a while, 好久不见了，how are you guys?  
> I have another cute fluffy chapter :3 (excluding Baek and Xing being horny af ^_^)  
> I don't have much to say other than stream 'Criminal' and support NGDA <33333 The whole album is so good ;-;  
> Anyway I love you guys and I'll see you soon hopefully! ^o^
> 
> Who caught our fairly recent reality Easter Egg in this chapter? Let us know in the comments! =D
> 
> Thank you for reading our interlude, we had fun watching our skaters relax a little before the competitive season picks up. See you soon~ <3
> 
> I'm in Criminal heaven (and over the moon that Heaven was confirmed for Act 2 \o/). If you haven't yet, consider checking out Taemin's new MV Criminal, it's epic: <https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hFQL7BS6lrs>.


	21. Chapter 19

“Text him.” 

“I am!” The blue glow of Jinki’s phone screen illuminates his face in the pitch-black apartment hallway.

“We look so fucking suspicious, tell him to hurry up and open the fucking door.” 

“And whose idea was this in the first place?” Jinki looks up from his phone and at the door expectantly. They don’t hear the footsteps, but they do hear the quiet turning of a lock and then Jonghyun’s sleepy but happy face peers out of a crack. 

“Shh.” He beckons Jinki and Minho in. 

“I can’t see shit,” Minho whispers quietly to Jinki, who is gripping onto the younger’s forearm. 

“It’s three in the morning, did you expect sunlight?” The two of them follow Jonghyun through the dark apartment, trying their best to make out hard walls and sharp corners before they actually walk into them. “Jjong, where are you?” 

“I’m right in front of you.” A hand reaches out in the blackness and grips Minho’s wrist to better lead them in the direction of Taemin’s bedroom. “Okay, be quiet, shh.” The radio host reaches out for the doorknob and slowly opens the closed bedroom door. Upon entering, the three of them tiptoe into the room and situate themselves right at the foot of the bed. If it weren’t for the fact that they know there is a petite, thin figure buried under the pile of sheets and blankets on the bed, Minho would have assumed the room was empty. For a moment, the three of them stand silently in the dark. Then they scream. 

“TAE! MIN! AH!” 

The poor boy jolts awake in a flash, only to be blinded by too much light far too quickly when Jonghyun flicks the lights on. 

“Wha--” With one hand over his eyes, the other struggling to push himself into an upright position, Lee Taemin emerges from the peaceful dark of sleep into the chaotic, loud, and cheerful world of his favorite hyungs. 

“Taeminnie!” Jinki cheers while Minho reaches over the bed to pat Taemin’s bedhead. “Happy birthday!” 

“Happy birthday, Taem!” Jonghyun buries his literal child in a massive hug, and Taemin reciprocates weakly, squinting against the light to take in the bright, beaming faces of Minho, Jinki, and Jonghyun. 

“Our Taeminnie is all grown up now,” Minho crows, and Jinki bursts into laughter. 

“He doesn’t even know it’s his birthday.” 

“I know,” comes Taemin’s sleepy murmur under Jonghyun, and it’s accompanied by a drowsy but grateful smile. “Ahhhh.” The skater wiggles his toes and yawns. “Why…” 

“Had to surprise you, of course,” Minho holds his hand out, and Taemin gives him a sleepy high five. “Our baby cheese. Did we scare you?” 

“I--” Taemin half shakes, half nods his head. “Mostly confused.” 

“Damn.” Minho doesn’t look too put off though.

“Mmmm.” Taemin’s face breaks into a wide, happy smile, the kind that makes his cheeks puff out and the corners of his eyes curl up. His pajama top is lopsided, but he pays that no attention, instead beaming up at his hyungs, the ones who have coddled, scolded, and practically raised him. “Thank you.” He’s cognizant enough to accept the big bouquet of birthday flowers that Jinki presses into his hands now, and he holds it close to his chest, breathing in the fragrant scent. 

“Would’ve gotten you something tasty, but you know how it is.” Minho sighs dramatically. “Why is your birthday in the middle of training season, huh?” He pinches Taemin’s cheek affectionately, making the younger smile even harder, if that’s possible. 

“So pretty.” Taemin reaches out towards all three of them at once, and they oblige, collapsing onto the comfortable bed to bury Taemin with love and affection. “Don’t crush the flowers!” 

“I could go to sleep right here,” Jinki murmurs, face buried somewhere under Minho’s armpit and against Taemin’s side. 

“What time is it?” Taemin inquires between his giggles. 

“About 3,” Jonghyun supplies

“Have to get up in a few hours,” Minho grumbles. 

“Hyungie, go sleep.” Taemin awkwardly extricates his arm from the mess of bodies and pats his head. “I’ll see you in the morning.” 

“What if we just stay here…” Minho closes his eyes. 

“Issok, too.” 

“Mincho, let’s go home.” Jinki is the first to pull back, and he tugs on Minho’s t-shirt. “We have to get up soon, let’s sleep.” 

“Yes, go sleep,” Jonghyun agrees, gently taking the flowers out of Taemin’s hands and walking them over to the desk. “That was fun.” 

“Happy birthday, baby cheese.” Minho pinches Taemin’s cheek one more time. “Looking forward to your 19 pushups at the rink.” 

“Okie.” Taemin hugs all of his hyung’s one last time, then huddles under the covers with shining eyes. “I don’t know if I can go back to sleep after this,” he jokes, which leads Minho to laugh far too loudly for this time of night. 

“You can. Your body needs it,” Jonghyun assures. “Good night, birthday boy.” The lights flick off. Taemin drifts back to sleep feeling warm, fuzzy, and undeniably loved. 

“Drop it like it’s hot, birthday hyung!” Sehun’s cheer is drowned out by everyone’s clapping and chants while Taemin places his bare hands on the cold, slippery ice and dutifully does his 19 pushups. “Hyung, your hands are so small, God…” Sehun teases, kneeling down to compare hand sizes. Taemin only laughs and places his hands on Sehun’s exposed neck. “SHITshitshitshit,” Sehun’s shoulders scrunch up in an attempt to displace Taemin’s hands. “Sorry, hyung!” Taemin removes his hands. “Small but mighty,” Sehun mutters, then runs away when Taemin threatens to use him as a hand warmer once again. 

“I miss only having to do 19 pushups,” Minho sighs, and Yixing nods fervently in agreement. 

“Both of you, zip it.” Jinki rolls his eyes as he watches Taemin chase Sehun around the rink in increasingly smaller circles. “Aish, this is why I’m retiring… 25 pushups is 25 too many.” 

“And here I was, thinking you were retiring so you could sit at the boards with Minseok and silently judge me.” Minho raises an eyebrow. 

“That, too.” 

“If you have that much energy left, maybe you should do another hour session,” Kibum calls, causing Sehun to exaggeratedly collapse onto the ice in a heap. Taemin simply skates back and sprays Kibum’s skates with snow. “Happy birthday. Please listen to what I say from now on.” 

“Thank you.” Taemin bows before accepting the customary box of cupcakes. 

“Are you going to acknowledge the second part of that?” 

“We’ll see.” Taemin innocently beams at his coach while Kibum sighs. The skater turns to Jongin, who’s busy swatting the snow off of Sehun’s backside. “Nini, sorry, could you help…” 

“Yeah, I gotchu.” Jongin scoops up Taemin’s jackets for him so he doesn’t have to pile everything in his arms. “So? How does it feel being 19?” 

“My hands are cold, my ankle is stiff, and I’m sore from yesterday.” Taemin reports, and Jongin laughs. “Doesn’t feel much different.” 

“Is your ankle okay?” 

“It’ll be fine. Just one too many bad landings today.” 

“Maybe tape it up a little for added stability,” Jongin suggests. 

“Yeah, I might. It’s not too bad, though.” Jongin slides his skate guards on first when they step off the ice together, then lets Taemin precariously balance the box of cupcakes on top of his armful of shedded layers so he can put his guards on as well. “Oh! I have to tell you what happened at 3 in the morning today.” 

“What happened at 3 in the morning?” Jongin asks, bemused. 

“Minho, Jinki, and Jonghyun hyung got into my room and started screaming at the top of their lungs.” Taemin’s expression is one of incredible affection as he recounts the scene to Jongin. “I had no idea what was happening. It was really the quintessential birthday experience.” 

“Oh my God, I’m surprised you didn’t punch anyone,” Jongin murmurs after he finishes laughing at the hyung’s antics. “Disturbing your sleep like that.” 

“They brought me flowers and everything,” Taemin protests lightly. “It was so cute. Cute and loud.” 

“That’s sweet. I wish I could count on my roommates to do that, but Chanyeol would probably try to suffocate me, and Jongdae would probably try and suffocate Chanyeol.” 

“That’s cute in a different way.” Taemin smiles. “Is Jongdae the one with the bad pickup lines?” 

“YES!” Jongin bursts into laughter. “I’m telling him you said that.” 

“Feel free.” The elder’s eyes crinkle up cheerfully at the corners. “Let me know how he reacts.” Taemin nudges the locker room door with his skate to push it open, and is promptly greeted by the usual chaos of two or three conversations going on at once. “Oh, Junmyeon-hyung is here,” Taemin looks behind his shoulder at Jongin. 

“Huh.” Jongin traipses into the locker room with his pile of jackets and awkwardly wiggles his entire body from side to side to return Junmyeon’s casual wave towards him and Taemin. “What are you doing here?” 

“Professor cancelled class at the last minute, so I came to make the boyfriend happy.” Junmyeon shares. “Happy birthday, Taemin!” 

“Thank you, hyung!” Taemin beams. “Do you want a cupcake? I wasn’t going to eat mine anyway--” 

“Nope.” Five voices--Minho, Jinki, Jonghyun, Jongin, and Junmyeon--all chime in and answer at the same time. Jongin blushes and drops his pile of jackets onto the bench while the four hyungs start arguing Taemin down. Somewhere in the midst of their protests, Yixing chimes in with a complicated-sounding Chinese proverb and gets up from his seat to drop two melon-flavored candies into Taemin’s hand.

“You will eat a goddamn cupcake on your birthday,” Minho growls as the locker room door swings open and Sehun traipses in. 

“Damn, is it that deep?” he asks, then turns towards his spot in the corner and lets out an excited yell. “Jun!” 

“Exactly! Is it that deep?” Taemin snatches up Sehun’s argument. 

“I take it back. It is that deep,” Sehun calls after Junmyeon embraces him and explains the situation. “Hyung, I’ll just split mine with him, seriously. It’s your birthday.” 

“Okay, okay.” Taemin acquiesces defeat and sits down to open up the box of cupcakes. 

“Hyung, I want candy, too,” Jongin pouts at Yixing, who readily hands him a piece. “Where’d you get these? They’re so good.” 

“China. I bring back a lot for all of you.” Yixing smiles. “Good for bad days.” 

“Good for any day,” Jongin corrects, popping the hard candy in his mouth to melt on his tongue while he unties his skates. 

“If you say so.” 

“Nini, cupcake?” Jongin turns towards Taemin to see him holding out a napkin and a chocolate cupcake. 

“Did you get one?” Jongin inquires, accepting his. 

“Yeah, yeah.” Taemin sighs. 

“Cheer up. It’s your birthday.” 

“Calories,” Taemin whines. 

“Are just Kibum’s way of preventing us from having good food,” Jongin finishes the sentence. “One cupcake won’t kill you, Taem. You still have a whole day of training left to burn it off.” 

“I guess.” Taemin doesn’t look convinced, but at least he nibbles at his dessert. 

“Taemin,” Jongin mumbles after he’s swallowed his first bite. “Do you have time tonight? After practice and workouts?” 

“Yes. I’m free.” Taemin looks up from untying his skates. 

“I have a uh… like… a present for you.” Jongin tells his jacket as he folds it up. 

“Oh!” Taemin’s eyes go all wide and surprised. “Nini, you didn’t have to.” 

“Too late.” Jongin looks up and hopes that his smile isn’t too big. Taemin’s face is flushed with unforeseen happiness. “I was wondering when it would be convenient for me to drop by and give it to you. It’s not exactly… uh… well, I didn’t want to bring it to the rink, cause it would be a lot to carry…” Jongin’s doing a really bad job of explaining. “You’ll see,” he finishes rather lamely. 

“Is it big? Ahh, Nini,” Taemin whines. 

“It’s not anything major,” Jongin promises. “Just let me know when you’re free.” Taemin laughs and nods.

“You can come over whenever you want. Maybe around 7 or 8? You can shower and take your time catching the bus.” 

“Okay, I can do that.” Jongin nods eagerly. “Text me your address?” 

“Yep. Nini, you really didn’t have to get me anything--” Taemin begins again, looking almost flustered, but Jongin cuts him off. 

“Too late.” 

Nobody on the bus really gives Jongin and his giant gift bag a second glance, seeing as they’re all independently tired and busy with their own lives, but the skater still feels self-conscious on his short ride. The bus drops him off within a few minutes’ walking distance to the apartment complex. Jongin’s familiar with the place by association, but not personally. And for the little more than one year in which he’s trained in this area, he has never been inside Jonghyun and Taemin’s apartment. The last remaining rays of warm sunshine sinking down below the uneven horizon of buildings dry his shower-damp hair as he walks to the building. His footsteps echo in the stone stairwell, and once he reaches the apartment number that Taemin had given him, he takes a moment to collect himself and brush his hair out of his face before he knocks nervously. In the six seconds (Jongin totally does not count) that it takes for Taemin to open the door, Jongin’s mind conjures up dozens of negative scenarios.  _ What if it’s too much? What if he doesn’t like it? What if this is the wrong door? What if-- _

“Nini!” Taemin exclaims, as if he hadn’t been expecting him, then his eyes flit to the gift bag that’s rather difficult to miss. “Wahhh!”

“Hey.” Jongin gives him a little awkward wave, then mentally punches himself for doing so. Taemin is just so _cute,_ with his full lips parted slightly in surprise and thanks. “Don’t be so impressed,” Jongin drops his gaze and blushes a little. “It’s not much.” Taemin laughs, all bubbly and excited. 

“I told you, getting me something was already too much.” Taemin reaches out, and Jongin is totally unprepared for the warm hand that clasps his and pulls him into the apartment. “Come in! Why are your hands still so cold?” Taemin smiles and squeezes his hand harder to warm it up while Jongin wonders how to tell Taemin it’s not warming up because all the blood is rushing to his cheeks. As Taemin pulls him into the apartment, Jongin looks around at the beige walls and somewhat messy living areas. It’s neater than his, Chanyeol, and Jongdae’s apartment. Whenever they have guests over, the clutter just gets shoved into someone’s room. At least Jongin can see the hardwood floor. 

“Hi, Jjong-hyung,” Jongin greets when he spots the radio host in the kitchen with an apron tied in his front and sleeves rolled up to his elbows. 

“It’s about time you visited, Nini,” comes the friendly reply. “Make yourself at home. Taem, be nice.” 

“He is nice,” Jongin says. 

At the same time, Taemin protests playfully. “I’m always nice.” 

“Don’t make me tell him about all the times you shut the door in my face,” Jonghyun threatens, and Jongin laughs easily, relaxing a little. 

“Here you go.” Jongin extends the hand gripping the string handles of the gift bag to Taemin. “You can open it now, if you want.” 

“Do you want me to?” 

“I--it’s your choice.” 

“I’ll open it now, then.” Taemin sits down on the couch and motions for Jongin to do the same as he pulls the gift bag towards himself. Tissue paper piles up at Taemin’s side when he digs into the bag, then there’s an exclamation of happiness and excitement. 

“Wahhh!” The elder’s eyes light up as he pulls out the neatly folded, thick, fluffy gray blanket, carefully tied up with a white ribbon. “So fluffy!” 

“I figured you would like it.” Jongin watches Taemin’s face carefully, elated when he sees nothing but cute eagerness and squishy cheeks. “We’re always traveling and spectating, and… you know. S’cold.” 

“Ahh, it’s so soft!” Taemin makes happy little noises of delight while he hugs the fabric to his chest and drops his precious cheek against the blanket. “And so warm!” 

“What is it?” Jonghyun calls out of curiosity from the kitchen. Jongin twists around to look over the back of the couch while Taemin stands up and holds the wrapped blanket over his head, waving it from side to side excitedly. 

“Hyung, it’s SO fluffy.” Taemin’s eyes are shining as bright as the moon that’s beginning to creep higher in the sky outside, and Jongin can’t help but chuckle to himself in disbelief that the reigning World Silver Medalist is  _ this  _ excited over his birthday gift. The younger can’t help but feel victorious. 

“Oh, that’s so cute!” Jonghyun looks up just long enough to see what Jongin’s present is. “Nini, you have good taste.” 

“Nah, I’m just always cold.” Jongin shrugs off the praise. Taemin giggles, then drops back down onto the couch and turns towards Jongin, already reaching out towards him. 

“Thank you, Nini,” Taemin coos, and Jongin carefully wraps his arms around Taemin’s petite waist, drops his chin over Taemin’s shoulder, and tilts his head against the elder’s affectionately. Taemin is warm and steady. He smells faintly of woody spices and almond-scented shampoo, and he is small, so small, but Jongin can still feel the definition, the posture, the strength in Taemin’s embrace. The hug lasts just a few seconds longer than needed, but Jongin isn’t exactly about to complain. Taemin pulls back and beams at Jongin with such a precious expression that Jongin almost kisses him. “This is so, so sweet of you.” 

“My pleasure.” Jongin reluctantly lets go of Taemin and picks at the hem of his shirt. Taemin makes him feel all fuzzy and warm, but also achingly empty. Their proximity only reminds Jongin of what it would be like if he could hold Taemin close and call him his own. Nonetheless, Taemin’s sweet smile as he gently places the blanket on the couch next to him and drops the tissue paper back into the empty bag makes Jongin’s heart flutter. 

“I’m going to bring this everywhere,” Taemin declares with finality. “It’ll be so warm in the winter and at the rink. It’s so nice, Nini.” 

“I’m really glad you like it.” Jongin smiles, watching Taemin untie the neat bow formed by the ribbon and unfurling the blanket in all of its fluffy glory. “Oh, my God--” Jongin’s heart nearly explodes when Taemin wraps it around himself and practically disappears in the fluffy gray mass.  _ Cute boy,  _ Jongin’s caveman brain supplies.  _ Me like. _

“I’m gonna fall asleep, I swear…” Taemin topples over and his head conveniently tips against Jongin’s shoulder. “It’s so comfortable,” he murmurs while Jongin struggles to remember how to breathe. “Ah, I’m getting drowsy.” 

“You worked hard today, Taemin-ah,” Jongin squeaks out as soft black hair tickles his neck and jawline. 

“That’s nothing new.” Taemin sits upright and lets the blanket slip off his shoulders and puddle around him on the couch. “Thank you, Nini. So much. This is special.” Special. Did Taemin just say he was special? Jongin is so accomplished. 

“No, you.” Jongin mumbles. 

“Hmm?” 

“Nothing.” Jongin looks up. “As long as you like it.” 

“I do, I really do.” Taemin gives him another world-ending smile, then looks up inquiringly as Jonghyun clears his throat loudly. 

“There are other ways to show your thanks, too, Taemi.” Jonghyun looks pointedly at the pot in front of him. 

“I knowwww,” Taemin puts an edge of a whine in his voice. “I was going to ask, hyung.” He turns back to Jongin. “You’re more than welcome to stay for dinner, since you came all this way just to give this to me.” 

“Oh,” Jongin’s brows furrow regretfully. “Thank you for the offer, but I think it’s better if I head home. Training and everything tomorrow, you know.” 

“Are you sure?” Taemin inquires, and Jongin wants to reverse his pragmatic decision almost immediately after he catches sight of Taemin’s pout. “You don’t have to stay too long. It’s just a matter of convenience.” 

“Dae and Yeol are expecting me for dinner,” Jongin declines and stands up. “Maybe some other time.” 

“Yes,” Jonghyun agrees, wiping his hands on a towel as Taemin trails behind Jongin. “Now that you’ve visited, you have to make it a habit, you hear me?” He playfully points a threatening wooden spoon towards Jongin. 

“Yes, hyung,” Jongin acquiesces instantly, but Taemin isn’t impressed. 

“Ohhh, scary.” The older skater fake-shivers, and Jonghyun directs the spoon towards him.

“I’ll be real scary if you don’t walk this boy to the bus stop.” 

“That’s not necessary--” Jongin begins to protest, but Taemin and Jonghyun both talk over him. 

“You’re just kicking me out!” 

“Dinner will be ready by the time you get back.” Jonghyun turns to the stove again. “Nini, side with me, please, and get this brat off my hands.” 

“Hyunggg,” 

“Besides, you all never get a chance to casually hang out,” Jonghyun finishes. Jongin has never seen anyone look so affectionately at someone while simultaneously calling them a brat. “It’s nice to see Taemi being something other than antisocial.” 

“Am not antisocial,” Taemin pouts. 

“You are if you don’t walk him to the bus stop.” 

“I was going to without you telling me,” Taemin grumbles. Jonghyun nods approvingly. 

“Have fun. Take your time.” 

“Bye, hyung,” Jongin calls, waving as he backs away from the kitchen and towards the front door. “See you at the rink sometime.” He slides his feet into black Converse, not bothering to hook the back of the shoe over his heel, then straightens up to wait for Taemin. 

“It’s nice outside,” Jongin murmurs once they are out of the apartment complex. Summer nights on the outskirts of South Korea’s biggest city are warm and dry. City lights twinkle further away on the horizon, while the yellow-orange glow of street lights provides illumination for the two figure skaters to walk side by side down the road. 

“It’s peaceful.” Taemin’s voice has lost its teasing edge to it; he’s softer now, but just as content as ever. 

“Beautiful birthday night,” Jongin points out, looping an arm around Taemin’s shoulder casually. His heart speeds up, but Taemin doesn’t push him away. If anything, he leans into the embrace. 

“Thank you for celebrating my birthday with me.” A smile graces Taemin’s face, and his head tilts against Jongin’s shoulder while they meander lazily in the direction of the bus stop. Jongin could melt into a puddle right then and there on the sidewalk. “I’m happy.” 

“Good,” Jongin murmurs, because Taemin deserves to be happy and own a giant, fluffy blanket. And that is only a small fraction of everything he should have. Taemin should feel loved and cherished and appreciated. He should have a table filled with his favorite dishes, and a cake that he doesn’t have to be afraid of eating. Jongin wants, at the very least, to tell Taemin to not be so dismissive of his birthday, even though training can feel repetitive. He can afford to take a little break, and think about everything that he’s accomplished this year. Jongin heaves a small, frustrated sigh. 

“What’s wrong?” Taemin lifts his head from Jongin’s shoulder to look at him. 

“Nothing, just tired.” Everything that Jongin really wants to say gets stuck in his throat.  _ You’re beautiful. Date me. I like you.  _ Or even just a simple,  _ take a break.  _ All useless, Jongin knows. Taemin’s work ethic is too incredible; Jongin understands, empathizes, and respects that, but he hates that it means Taemin doesn’t even get to enjoy the simple things in life. 

“Me, too.” Taemin laughs quietly. “Always tired. But it’s worth it if we did a good job at the end of the day.” 

“Yeah.” 

“I’m really excited for this season to start.” The way Taemin says it sounds like he’s confiding in Jongin. “The anticipation is already building. The program speculation, the season’s favorites, the competition lineup.” Taemin laughs a little. “I always get excited around this time of year. And I think this year will be… really, really good.” Taemin purses his lips as he thinks about it. “Yeah. I want this to be my best season yet.” 

“It will be.” Jongin answers quietly, but with conviction. “Watching you practice, I know you’ll be amazing, Taemin-ah. Technically and artistically.” 

“I want to seduce them. The judges, the crowd.” Jongin’s arm slips off Taemin’s shoulders in surprise. There’s a hint of playfulness in the way Taemin says it, but he means it. “‘Slave’ is going to be special.” 

“If Cherry Blossom was any indication of how people feel about it, you should probably prepare for a lot of love confessions,” Jongin remarks, watching Taemin skip a few steps ahead of him and twirl around to settle into his starting position for the short program. “You really want to do a non-mandatory run through?” Jongin calls out, but Taemin makes eye contact with him from under his lashes while his hips undulate, and Jongin stops in his tracks. There’s no music of course, but Taemin’s movements stay on beat with the thud of Jongin’s heart as the elder stalks towards him, all beguiling charm and swaying hips. Closer. Closer. Jongin stays frozen in place while Taemin steps into Jongin’s personal space, maintaining that stupid-hot hooded smirk the entire time. The elder’s arms reach up to drape themselves over either of Jongin’s shoulders, and Jongin has to bite the inside of his cheek so as to not squeak. The second Jongin dares to meet Taemin’s electrifying gaze, he’s tempted to just drop to his knees and let the elder have his way with him. Instead, he clears his throat and stutters almost incoherently. 

“I thought… your Quad Flip goes on the other side of the rink.” Jongin bites his lip while Taemin’s facade breaks and he cracks up, giggling into Jongin’s shoulder. 

“It does,” Taemin agrees as they resume walking, only this time, he reaches out for Jongin’s hand. The younger curls his fingers around Taemin’s small hand and squeezes lightly. This is fine. More than fine. Jongin will happily hold hands if Taemin wants to. “But your expression was priceless. And you see that program everyday.” 

“That just means I’m very aware of its full potential,” Jongin grumbles. 

“I suppose.” The rest of the short walk is rather quiet, but Jongin protests when Taemin takes a seat next to him at the empty bus stop. 

“You really don’t have to wait with me.” 

“Oh, but I really do. Hyung’s going to kill me.” Taemin has zero qualms about curling up against Jongin’s shoulder on the seat. “Besides, I like spending time with you.” Jongin bites back the giant smile that threatens to make him look like an idiot while his heart does backflips and cartwheels. 

“Okay.” Nothing to protest about, especially if it means more cuddles. Jongin says a silent prayer of thanks to whoever decided that Taemin would be touchy-feely with his close friends. He’s so adorable. So endearing. So cute. So--

“Isn’t this your bus?” 

“Huh?” Jongin looks up. “Oh, shit. Yeah.” Taemin giggles and moves away to let Jongin stand up.

“Be safe on your way home. I’ll see you tomorrow!” 

“Bright and early.” Jongin groans, but waves back. “Happy birthday, Taemin-ah.” 

After the single precious break day that the skaters were allowed after Cherry Blossom, off season was, by every definition, over. Taemin’s birthday felt special, but from then on, everything starts to blur into a monotonous drone of sore bodies, bruised hips, and cold fingers. Everyday consists of the same three responsibilities: Skate. Skate. Skate. Repetition is crucial to success in figure skating--Jongin’s ultimate goal is to land his jumps in his sleep, to instinctively hit every nuance of his choreography, to automatically be able to feel if a mistake was made without thinking twice about it. Jongin runs countless programs, falls countless times, runs countless laps. He pushes himself to his maximum, but at the same time, he has to be careful not to injure himself. Still, the physically demanding schedule and sport take their toll. If Jongin isn’t skating, running, or stretching, he’s staying as still as humanly possible, because why would he want to move when every inch of his body is either bruised or sore? Whenever Jongin used to fall asleep, he had a small window of wakefulness where he would think about the day’s events, and maybe dream about a particular boy with soft black hair and Quad Lutz-Triple Loop combinations that look as effortless as breathing. But nowadays, Jongin’s out before his head hits the pillow, and his dreams all consist of either cheesy pizza with every meat topping imaginable or Kibum yelling at him. It’s hardly an exaggeration; in the midst of training season, his entire being is concentrated on getting ready for the upcoming competitive year. And given that Jongin is competing in JGP this year, his competition is the first big international one out of all the skaters in Ki-gang. The Senior skaters still have about two months, but Jongin only has one--and boy, does that one month fly by fast. Weeks pass by in the blink of an eye, and before Jongin knows it, he’s walking into the rink on Monday with less than five days left before he leaves for JGP USA in Lake Placid, and it hits him. 

He is NOT ready. 

He’s still stumbling on that combination towards the end of his program. His stamina isn’t up to par. His spins could be faster, his footwork less sloppy, his expressions more artistic. He’s been bloated these past few days, he’s letting GOE bullets slip past his fingers, he isn’t running record times like he should be. It feels as if the past three weeks of hard training haven’t done anything. And so Jongin does the rational thing that any hardworking, diligent, humble athlete would do--he panics. 

“Head up!” Kibum’s voice rings loud even over ‘Lilies of the Valley’, and Jongin looks up to the highest bleachers in the stadium. Where the eyes go, the head follows. “PUSH!” 

“What is he, pregnant?” Minho grumbles under his breath to Yixing when he passes by, and Yixing grabs onto the boards lest he fall from laughing too hard. Minho’s smile is a little too self-satisfied going into his next Quad Salchow. 

“Take a lap,” Kibum announces when Jongin hits his ending pose breathlessly. The coach steps out of the penalty box and glides over to the aux cord to restart Jongin’s music from the middle. “Then pick it up after your Triple Axel and do the back half of your program.” For endurance, Jongin knows, but he’s totally beat. One would think that he’d be used to the three minute and thirty second programs, with this being his second year in Junior, but of course he’s not. Three minutes and thirty seconds will always feel like hell on Earth. He lands the Triple Axel, but the last two jumps he pops. And then he slips off his edge on his back camel variation spin and wearily picks himself up off the ice to mark his ending pose before turning away to hide the unshed tears of panic and anxiety that well up and sting his eyes. 

“Take another lap,” comes Kibum’s unbothered reply. Jongin does, and the tears stream down his face. He’s not ready. He’s such a mess. He stops in front of Kibum, who looks at him funny. “Are you crying?” 

“It’s just the wind.” Jongin wipes his not-tears away. 

“Okay. Well, I thought it was good.” Kibum hops up to sit on the boards while Jongin takes a drink of water. “Everything looks solid.” Everything is not solid, Jongin thinks. Everything is shaky and wobbly. Everything is rushed and messy and not ready to be performed. “What did you think?” 

“The second half was terrible,” Jongin mutters. 

“That was just for stamina. You got through all the transitions just fine.” Kibum nods and leaves it at that. “Work on whatever you want, except for Quads. Don’t want you to get injured so close to JGP USA. For the next few days until we leave, just keep doing what you’re already doing, okay?” 

“Yep.” 

“Good lesson.” Kibum inclines his head as Jongin bows ninety degrees, then turns and searches for his next student. “Jinki!” 

“Nini!” A familiar voice calls out for him at the end of practice as he’s getting off the ice, and Jongin stops stroking to simply glide as Taemin catches up to him and reaches out to gently grab his elbow. “How was practice?” 

“Terrible.” Not even Taemin’s sympathetic smile can cheer him up. 

“That bad?” 

“JGP is in four days, and I’m an absolute mess.” Jongin’s reply is short and self-loathing. If he elaborates, he might start crying. 

“No, you’re not.” Taemin slides one skate guard onto his blade before he steps off the ice onto the black rubber mats. 

“Sure.” Jongin walks towards the locker rooms faster than he usually does, but Taemin keeps up next to him. 

“Nini, you’ll be fine,” Taemin consoles. His forehead is shiny with a thin sheen of sweat. The apples of his cheeks are pink from the cold, and his hair looks adorably tousled and wind blown. Normally, Jongin would have recognized how cute the boy of his dreams is. But today, all he’s focused on is how very un-cute his program is. 

“Uh huh.” Jongin unties his skates with an edge of impatience, cursing under his breath when he accidentally forms a dead knot that just won’t loosen no matter what. Frustration wells up in his chest and his breath comes in short gasps. Why isn’t anything working today? Why can’t he just deliver performances the way Minho can, all flaming charisma and laser-beam eyes, or like Jinki, with practiced confidence and seamless elegance? Why--

“Nini.” Soft, white hands cover his tan ones and replace them to nimbly and quickly untie the knot. Jongin looks up to see Taemin kneeling in front of him, cheeks curling up as he smiles kindly at Jongin. Jongin’s brows furrow and he pouts in distress. “Nini, your hands are so cold.” Jongin extends his left hand out to Taemin, who takes it and envelops it in his own small ones. “Listen to me.” Taemin’s eyes pierce through Jongin and see everything. He analyzes the messy disarray of suppressed worry and panic in Jongin’s heart with steady confidence. “I know how you are feeling. I know there is a lot of pressure that you’re putting on yourself to do well. I know it feels like you’re getting nothing done. I know it feels like there’s not enough time.” The general din of the locker room fades away as Taemin begins talking, as if it’s just the two of them in a private little bubble. With each word, Jongin feels himself tipping towards tears again. Taemin hits every problem spot on. Of course he does--he’s been in this exact same position countless times before. The elder squeezes his hand lightly. “You’re ready,” Taemin murmurs. “And even if you don’t feel like you are, what you have right now is enough. I promise it’s enough. The nature of skating is that you don’t recognize how much progress you have made until you’re called on to acknowledge it.” Wise beyond his years. Taemin’s sincere advice to Jongin settles the grit in his heart better than a perfectly clean program runthrough could. “You will do amazing,” Taemin assures him. “And you are still in training mode for four more days. You can still improve in four days.” 

“I know.” Jongin takes a deep, steadying breath. “It’s just that JGP is going to be my first international. I don’t want to… to waste it, or make Kibum mad, or…” 

“Waste it? Nini, you aren’t going to waste any opportunity.” Taemin’s voice is soft, but so sure of himself. “It’s not as if you’re going there to just screw around.” 

“No,” Jongin agrees quietly. 

“So Kibum won’t get mad, and you’ll do your very best. That’s all that anyone is expecting.” Taemin pushes himself up from his kneeling position and lightly embraces Jongin in a comforting hug. “Calm down. We still have a whole day of training left, don’t tire yourself out with thoughts like these, Nini.” 

In the afternoon, Jongin feels slightly more consoled because of his conversation with Taemin earlier in the day, but some of that agitation comes back as he begins to work on his jumps. Today seems to be another dreaded cursed practice--one where Jongin just seems to get in everyone’s way. He circles countless times for Minho and Yixing, who hog the exact spot where Jongin’s Triple Flip-Euler-Triple Salchow combination is. Of course, it’s not intentional, but who is Jongin to tell his sunbaes to move? It’s their right-of-way. Still, Jongin gets increasingly anxious as he dodges Jinki’s long program run through and tries, with little success, to get a few combinations landed when Minho and Yixing are skating the opposite way. 

“Hyungs,” Jongin growls under his breath next to Sehun when he returns to the boards. Sehun sighs emphatically. 

“Tell me about it. The number of times I’ve had to move for Minho and Yixing-hyungs today, I swear…” 

“They’re not even competing.” Jongin doesn’t mean to be rude, he loves them to death, just not when they’re both constantly blocking him. Taemin whizzes by both of them as the words leave Jongin’s mouth, and Sehun’s hair flies back from his face because of the wind generated from Taemin’s speed and proximity. Both of them watch as Taemin catapults himself into a gorgeous Triple Axel-Triple Toe.

“Good luck. You got it.” Sehun thumps Jongin on the back as he skates away. The elder pushes off and circles to go for his pattern once more, only to be cut off by Minho skating towards him. Jongin veers away to let Minho pass, and as he does, he has to stop abruptly so as to not be run over by Jinki. Jongin glances down at his skates, scuffed and slightly worn from all the falls and practice, and sighs wearily. For the umpteenth time this year, he feels as if he does not belong here, training in such an elite environment, preparing for such an important competition. JGP? Team Korea? Who is he kidding, when he can’t even hold his own in practice everyday? Jongin’s mind is totally preoccupied with these types of thoughts as he reluctantly skates down the long side of the rink to go into his combination. What’s the point when he’s just going to get blocked again? Out of the corner of his eye, he sees Taemin skating wide circles around the spot where he needs to jump. Jongin sighs and prepares to turn away, but as he curves into the jump, Taemin moves for him without batting an eye. The elder veers away from Jongin’s anticipated pattern; Jongin takes the opportunity and lands a pretty solid Flip-Euler-Salchow. Scratchy landing. He should try another one. So he picks up speed on the same pattern as before, and as he curves around, he sees Minho and Taemin both heading for his spot once again. 

“There’s a whole ass ice rink,” Jongin mumbles under his breath, still approaching the pattern just in case the three of them can time themselves correctly and he can get his jump in. 

“IT’S MINE!” Taemin’s voice is firm and loud from the end of the rink. It’s one of those declarations that’s final, no nonsense, mandatory. ‘Don’t fuck with my practice’. Minho gives up readily, because he just defers to Taemin whenever the youngest Senior skater wants something. It’s always been that way; what Taemi wants, Taemi gets.. Jongin is about to circle as well, but to his absolute shock, Taemin doesn’t do his jump. After all that yelling, he simply turns forwards and skates away, effectively leaving the entire area open for Jongin to do his combination with no fear of getting blocked. Only then does it dawn on Jongin what Taemin is doing for him. He’s using his own seniority to give Jongin space; telling the others to stand down. To let him practice. Jongin lands his combination flawlessly, then whirls around to find where Taemin is and make grateful eye contact, but the elder is already fully immersed in his footwork on the other side of the ice. 

“Taemin-ah.” Jongin waits by the boards, jackets, water bottle, and gloves in his arms. The Zamboni trundles out before Taemin finally stops jumping, and skates back to the boards to collect his things and greet the younger with a tired, sweaty, but beaming smile. 

“How was practice?” 

“You…” Jongin doesn’t even know what to say. Throughout almost the entire practice, Taemin had simultaneously had an uninterrupted training session while opening up space for Jongin to jump whenever he needed it. And, like the playful little devil he is, he hadn’t looked at Jongin even once. “You didn’t have to.” 

“Have to do what?” Taemin feigns ignorance mischievously. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.” The giant, self-satisfied smile on his face says otherwise. Jongin laughs in spite of himself. 

“Don’t play coy!” 

“I don’t know!” Taemin giggles when Jongin slings an arm around Taemin’s shoulder exasperatedly as they glide off the ice. 

“Thank you.” 

“I know how it feels.” Taemin ducks out from Jongin’s arm to slide his skate guards on. “Public sessions were always crowded when I was little.” 

“I bet.” 

“I just didn’t want you to be stressed.” Taemin tells him sincerely. “You don’t need to be.”

“How did you run programs on public sessions?” Jongin doesn’t really want to think about his own practice right now. “Wait--how did you even get a program if you didn’t have a coach? Don’t tell me you--” 

“--self-choreographed.” Taemin nods and giggles as Jongin’s jaw hits the ground in shock. “What? I self-choreograph now.” 

“Taemin, you were a child.” Jongin says flatly. 

“Yes, so they were really, really bad programs. Trust me. I either copied what I saw on TV, or made it up with no rhyme or reason.” 

“I’m going to ask Jjong-hyung for your old videotapes.” 

“Nini, don’t,” Taemin’s intonation comes out as a playful whine. “They’re really bad, nothing worth watching.” 

“I could use a laugh.” Jongin can already see it in his mind’s eye, a baby Taemin in small skating boots, marching around the ice executing supremely cringy choreography into little jumps and spins. “You were probably still cute.” The pair of them walk into the locker room, still chattering away. 

“I had to be,” Taemin says quite seriously. “Otherwise I’m not quite sure what the judges were thinking when they gave me gold at my first competition.” This makes Jongin crack a smile. 

“I fell in my first competition.” 

“Oh?” 

“Yeah.” Jongin rubs the back of his neck sheepishly at the memory. “I had a little soldier program, and at the end I had to do a little bunny hop and salute. So I tripped while hopping and fell down as the music ended.” Taemin claps his hands in appreciation of the mental scene that Jongin’s description conjures. “It was so embarrassing.” 

“Nooo, that must’ve been cute. I want to see that.” Taemin bends over to untie his skates. “Competing was always my favorite part of skating. Competing and performing.” 

“Lucky you.” Jongin sighs. 

“You don’t like competing?” Taemin asks in surprise. 

“I do, I really enjoy it. But the past few years, I just keep… self-sabotaging. I’m an overthinker.” The palms of Jongin’s hands start to feel sweaty just from thinking about it. “It’s only gotten worse as the competitions get bigger.” 

“That’s not just you. Almost everyone goes through that.” Taemin doles out advice casually while wiping down his blades. “International competitions feel very different from local ones.” 

“But I don’t know how to control all that negativity.” Jongin’s leg jiggles nervously, and Taemin lays a hand on the top of his thigh. Jongin stops immediately, mostly out of surprise than anything else. The hand withdraws to resume packing up Taemin’s skating bag, but Jongin can still feel the imprint of its warmth through his pants. 

“Part of it is experience. Just getting used to delivering performances under that kind of pressure.” Taemin’s voice is slightly sympathetic, because experience takes time, which means there’s bound to be a learning curve for Jongin. “But I also meditate and pray before performances. It helps a lot.” 

“Meditation?” Jongin is dubious, to say the least. He knows Taemin prays, has seen him with his back pressed up against a concrete wall, eyes closed, hands clasped together near his heart. He looks serene and eerily powerful at the same time. But meditation is a little… cheesy. Perhaps Jongin only harbors that thought because he’s never tried it, but he’s doubtful nonetheless. 

“It’s not what you think it is.” Taemin seems to read the apprehension on Jongin’s face. “Jinki-hyung taught me how before my first Junior Nationals. It actually works; I do it before every skate.” 

“Huh.” Jongin folds his team jacket neatly into his bag and stands up. 

“If you like, I can show you how,” Taemin offers earnestly. “If you like it, you can try next week before you compete.” Yixing holds the locker room door open for both of them, and Jongin nods his thanks to the Chinese skater before turning back to Taemin. The elder continues. “It only takes as long as you need it to. I think you’ll be pleasantly surprised.” 

“O-kay,” Jongin agrees hesitantly, and more because of his gigantic crush on Taemin than anything else. Taemin smiles, all warm and eagerly helpful. 

“I can show you after group workouts. It’s a nice way to wind down.” 

“Sure.” Jongin happily lets Taemin reach out for his hand and squeeze promisingly. Privately, though, Jongin thinks that spending time with Taemin calms him down better than any meditation session. 

Bonus time! Now that the competitive season is picking up, we decided to include a couple of skater (almost) ISU bios of our beloved cast ♡ as well as canon skaters that you will encounter at the various competitions in upcoming chapters. We’ll start with the Junior skaters, as their competitions are first in the timeline. You’ll find that some details match with our real idols, but others (i.e. birth places and dates) have been altered for the sake of the AU.

The ISU has dates in the format of DD.MM.YYYY and we kept that for our version of it, as well as the overall format / type of information included. We will link the ISU bios of canon skaters alongside our copy of it when we get to them.

For today, enjoy meeting our Luv Little Freaks FSC Juniors \o/ =).

_Junior Men_

Jongin KIM

KOR

Date of birth | 14.01.2001 (18)  
---|---  
Place of birth | Seoul  
Height | 180 cm  
Home town | Seoul  
Profession | Student  
Hobbies | Dance, Legos  
Start skating / current Club |  **2009** / **Luv Little Freaks Figure Skating Club** |   
Internet / Social Media contact | [zkdlin on Instagram](https://www.instagram.com/zkdlin/)  
  
Coach | Kibum Kim, Kyungsoo Do  
---|---  
Choreographer | Minseok Kim  
Former Coach | Chi Hyun-jung  
Practice off season |  **10** h/week **Seoul/SK**  
Practice competitive season |  **16** h/week **Seoul/SK**  
  
Music Short Program as of season 2019/2020  
**Writing’s on the Wall by Sam Smith**

Music Free Skating / Free Dance as of season 2019/2020  
**Lilies of the Valley by Jun Miyake**

Personal Best Total Score  
---  
185.66 | 12.01.2019 | South Korean Nationals 2019  
Personal Best Score Short Program  
62.55 | 04.07.2019 | Cherry Blossom Open 2019  
Personal Best Score Free Skate  
123.45 | 13.01.2019 | South Korean Nationals 2019  
  
Kim was trained in classical ballet starting at a young age. In the spring of 2018, he switched coaches and moved home rinks to train with Kibum Kim. Coach Kibum Kim is the 1994 and 1995 World Champion and the 1994 Olympic Bronze Medalist, making him the first South Korean skater to medal in any discipline of figure skating at the Olympic Games.

_Junior Men_

Sehun OH

KOR

Date of birth | 12.04.2001 (18)  
---|---  
Place of birth | Daegu  
Height | 183 cm  
Home town | Seoul  
Profession | Student  
Hobbies | Sleeping  
Start skating / current Club |  **2006** / **Luv Little Freaks Figure Skating Club** |   
Internet / Social Media contact | [oohsehun on Instagram](https://www.instagram.com/oohsehun/)  
  
Coach | Kibum Kim, Kyungsoo Do  
---|---  
Choreographer | Minseok Kim  
Former Coach | n/a  
Practice off season |  **10** h/week **Seoul/SK**  
Practice competitive season |  **16** h/week **Seoul/SK**  
  
Music Short Program as of season 2019/2020  
**Requiem for a Tower by Escala**

Music Free Skating / Free Dance as of season 2019/2020  
**Back to Black by The Bryan Ferry Orchestra**

Personal Best Total Score  
---  
180.30 | 05.07.2019 | Cherry Blossom Open 2019  
Personal Best Score Short Program  
57.88 | 04.07.2019 | Cherry Blossom Open 2019  
Personal Best Score Free Skate  
122.42 | 05.07.2019 | Cherry Blossom Open 2019  
  
Oh started skating when he was five years old and has trained with Coach Kibum Kim since he was little. He admires Minho Choi in figure skating, and says that his dream is to compete against him one day.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> On God I have never related so much to an ISU bio  
>  _hobbies_  
>  **sleeping**  
>  _role model_  
>  **choi minho**  
>  _dreams and aspirations_  
>  **have choi minho step on me**  
>  Sehun best boy  
>  Aren't the bios so sososososo pretty ;-; and cute ;-; AND THE PROFILE PICTURES TT_TT AND THE INSTAGRAM LINK ! AND THE BORDER AND THE LOGO AND THE SKATING CLUB AND EVERYTHING woaeifawje Everyone say it with me:  
>  _Aranee  
>  Best  
>  Co-author  
>  _
> 
> Also, I missed you guys ;-; thank you for waiting forever for the update ♡♡♡ I hope that the next one won't take this long, but life is life, what can you do :3 Anyway, I hope you enjoyed this entire chapter full of TaeKai being the metaphysical form of slow burn  
>  \\(^o^)/  
>  I'll see you all very, very soon (hopefully). Also Jongin has his first JGP coming up! How exciting! If he doesn't get at least one good luck in the comments, I'm going to make him fall and be sad, so _tell him good luck in the comments._ -.-  
>  ;) ♡♡♡
> 
> Such a happy birthday boy with a giant fluffy blanket <3\. Hope Jongin will survive this fic without developing a serious heart condition with all those irregularities he is going through~ Many little canon Easter eggs included as always =D.
> 
> Thank you for always waiting for us, we will keep updating, even if it can take a little longer at times. We write whenever we can find some free time along our normal schedules =).
> 
> We are looking forward to all your comments, and good luck Jongin for your first international competition! You'll do great! See you soon <3.


	22. Chapter 20

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Underlined dialogue is English.  
>  _Italic_ dialogue is Mandarin Chinese.

“Niniiii,” Taemin calls his name, and Jongin looks over tiredly to where Taemin is stretching his hamstrings out on the yoga mat next to him. “Ah…I’m exhausted…” 

“Same. Why did Kibum add that last set?” Jongin grumbles. “You’d think he’d go easy right before JGP USA.” 

“Right?” Taemin agrees, wiping sweat off his forehead.

Today is the day before Jongin has to fly to America to compete in the Junior Grand Prix. The thought makes him breathless with excitement, and also stirs butterflies in his stomach from nervousness. He’s not sure what to expect from his first international competition, but he does have a list of the best restaurants and sightseeing spots from his teammates. Essentials first. 

“Done stretching?” Taemin asks as Jongin sits up and reaches towards his toes. It hurts. Good thing he’s not required to have his splits. 

“Yep.” 

“Are you nervous?” Taemin asks, standing up from his mat and offering his hand out to Jongin, who clasps it, then slings a supporting arm around Taemin’s shoulders despite the fact that both of them are smelly and sweaty from afternoon practice and group workouts. Taemin doesn’t complain; Jongin’s heart flutters. 

“A little,” Jongin says, then reconsiders. “Actually, I’m terrified.” 

“What are you most terrified about?” Taemin’s lips quirk upward at the corners as he asks. 

“Spending 18 hours on a flight sitting next to Kibum,” Jongin confesses, and Taemin collapses, tipping his head against Jongin’s shoulder in amusement. 

“Ah, cute,” he thinks he hears Taemin say, but he doesn’t want to push his luck. Taemin eventually straightens back up, eyes alight with mirth. “That’s valid. When you put it into perspective, that’s much scarier than four minutes on the ice performing a program you know how to do in your sleep, right?” 

“Exactly,” Jongin agrees, slinging his bag over one shoulder and futilely trying to fix his hair. 

“I know you’ll do amazing.” Hearing Taemin say it, Jongin almost begins to believe it himself. “Just do what you do in practice everyday.” 

“I just want to stay on my feet,” Jongin tells Taemin his personal goal for the competition. “I don’t want to fall.” 

“Then do that,” Taemin encourages. “You can do everything in your program flawlessly.” He holds his arms out for a hug, and Jongin leans into them happily, embracing the warmth and steadiness of Taemin that he loves so much. “I trust you,” Taemin murmurs. “It’s exciting, isn’t it? Your first international. I hope that it’s everything you want it to be and more.” The hug lingers for a little longer than it rightfully should--long enough for Sehun to smirk and wink at Jongin behind Taemin’s back--but Jongin just ignores him, ignores his thoughts, ignores everything except his gorgeous best friend.

“Me, too.” Jongin closes his eyes and smiles. “Thank you, Taemin-ah.” 

As it turns out, Jongin didn’t really have to worry too much about an awkward flight next to Kibum. His coach mostly keeps to himself; Jongin, with the help of his neck pillow and travel blanket, tries to catch up on much-needed sleep in fitful waves of slumber and wakefulness. At one point though, Kibum chuckles at something and Jongin glances over, more because of the sudden noise than anything. Kibum glances at him and brings his phone closer so Jongin can watch the video. 

“Old practice video.” Kibum explains, then presses play. The quality of the video is grainy, but even so, Jongin watches the skater in the video launch himself into a Triple Axel-Triple Toe-Triple Toe-Triple Toe--Jongin stops counting after the third one. There’s a loud whoop from whoever is filming the video, a smattering of applause from the sidelines, then the video cuts out. 

“How many Triple Toe’s was that?” Jongin’s dizzy just from watching the skater jump. 

“7, maybe 8.” Kibum smirks and leans back in his chair. “Textbook perfect technique.” 

“Who is it?” Jongin wants to know. 

“Who do you think it is?” 

“...Minho-hyung?” Jongin hazards a guess, but Kibum bursts into laughter. 

“Oh, honey, I wish Minho could do that. No.” Kibum’s eyes glint with self-satisfaction. “That’s me.” 

“WHAT?” Jongin’s neck pillow jerks as Jongin whips his head to the side to stare at his coach in disbelief. “That’s YOU?” 

“In my prime. Well, not that I’m not in my prime now, but in my competition prime. This was… right before the 1994 Lillehammer Olympics.”

“The one you qualified for?” 

“The one I medaled at, Nini. I qualified for 1990 as well.” Kibum winks while Jongin takes the time to remember that his coach has an insane skating resume, more loaded with accolades than those of his equally insane students. 

“Right.” Jongin acquiesces.

“Could be a fun exercise for off season.” Kibum suggests; Jongin laughs shakily and pulls his blanket closer around himself. 

“Only fun for you, Coach.” 

“You all loveeee my exercises.” 

“Sureee, Coach. Whatever you say.” Jongin laughs easily while Kibum rolls his eyes. 

“You can do it.” Kibum returns his attention back to his phone. “What’s a few Triple Toes?” 

Upstate New York is sunny, warm, and surprisingly quiet. Jongin texts his parents as he follows Kibum through the airport, sleepily clutching his carry-on bag with his blanket, school homework, and skates. Per Minho’s advice, a skater should never put their skates in luggage. As soon as they’re in the taxi, Jongin texts Taemin.

Taemin-ah 

where are the skyscrapers -.-

Taemin-ah 

that’s new york city ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ

safe flight? 

yep~ 

I slept so Kibum couldn’t annoy me

but he did flex on me with his old practice videos

Taemin-ah 

sounds like him 6v6

text me when you’re at the hotel~

“That’s Lake Placid,” Kibum glances over the passenger seat to Jongin and motions outside of the window. Jongin looks up to see a huge, glittering lake, dotted with a few kayaks out on the water, enjoying the nice water. “Beautiful scenery.” 

“Yeah, it is pretty.” The lake looks so peaceful and relaxing. 

“It’s only a short way away from the rink,” Kibum adds. “If you want, I’m sure you can grab Doyoung to do some sightseeing. We’re staying at the same hotel as Woohyun and him.” 

“I might do that.” Jongin’s short program is still four days away, but the extra time is to account for jet lag. He might as well do some sightseeing instead of staying holed up in the hotel room and ice rink for the whole trip. 

“Where are you two from?” The taxi driver speaks up in English, and Jongin panics, because he can’t understand a thing. His alarm turns into surprise though, as Kibum replies to the question in mildly accented, but smooth, unworried English. 

“Korea.” 

“Damn, that’s a long way! What brings you two to Lake Placid?” 

“There’s a figure skating competition here this week,”  Kibum explains to the driver, who looks at Jongin through the rearview mirror. 

“Ice skating, huh? Both of you competing?” The driver asks to no avail from Jongin, but he earns a laugh from Kibum. 

“Hell no. Not me. Just him.” Kibum gestures to Jongin in the backseat, who just nods, wide-eyed and uncomprehending. “I’m his coach.” 

“Really, now? Interesting!” From then, the conversation flows easily between the driver and Kibum until they reach the hotel. Topics range from the weather, to sightseeing, to Korean food. At some point, Jongin’s name comes up in conversation, even though he remains helplessly mute the whole time. When the driver wishes him luck, though, Kibum finally takes pity on his student and translates rapidly so that Jongin can acknowledge the well-wishes. He bows a little. 

“Thank you,” he stammers. Two out of the ten words he knows.

“Have a good trip, you two.” The driver helps them get their suitcases out of the trunk, then waves them off. Jongin stares at Kibum in shock. 

“You speak ENGLISH?” He’s learning all sorts of things on this trip, and it hasn’t even been 24 hours.

“Well, I can promise you I wasn’t speaking French there, honey.” Kibum ruffles Jongin’s hair affectionately as they walk into the lobby of the hotel.

宝贝 (Baobei) 

❤

宝贝 (Baobei) 

❤❤

❤❤❤

宝贝 (Baobei) 

❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤

I miss u :( 

me too ❤

how is training today?

宝贝 (Baobei) 

it’s not that bad today

i get to go home instead of staying at the dorm 

oh really? 

what time? 

宝贝 (Baobei) 

around 9 ig

not bad~

宝贝 (Baobei) 

yea just a relaxing night

wbu? 

how was practice? 

amazing 

no kibum

jongin save us all

宝贝 (Baobei) 

ur so cute :3 

都是你~

all you~

宝贝 (Baobei) 

ik i’m cute, i’m telling you YOU’RE cute

-.- 

宝贝 (Baobei) 

;) 

❤❤ 

ah rip i gotta go now

okayy 

加油宝贝

fighting baobei ❤

“It’s literally been three days, Sehun,” Minho is saying exasperatedly to the younger skater when Yixing tunes back into the general conversation in the locker room. 

“But it feels like it’s been monthssss.” 

“What happen?” Yixing turns to Taemin for an explanation. 

“Junmyeon-hyung’s out of town for something school-related,” Taemin supplies. 

“Ah.” Sehun’s complaining makes perfect sense then. 

“You’re lucky that Junmyeon puts up with clinginess,” Minho tells Sehun with a note of incredulity in his voice. “I mean, look at Xing over there, he’s practically dating a figment of his imagination.” All eyes turn to Yixing, who suddenly becomes very invested in untying his skates. “Xing,” Minho calls. Yixing glances up. “How long has it been since you’ve seen Baekhyun?” 

“Uh…” Yixing wracks his memory. “Last time I see him… after Cherry Blossom?” 

“What?!” Sehun looks taken aback, then his eyebrows furrow as his expression morphs into one of sympathy. “How do you even stand it?” 

“Both busy,” Yixing replies quietly, tucking his skates into his bag and standing up to leave. “But it okay,” he adds with a trace of a smile on his face. “I see him tonight.” 

“Have funnnn,” Minho draws the word out suggestively, which makes Sehun smirk, too. Yixing just waves. 

Baekhyun has his hands in his pockets, earbuds tucked in, and music blasting from his phone as he makes the short walk from the bus stop back to his apartment. It’s dark out, and it’s been a long day, but the streetlamps and passerby on midsummer night time walks create a lighthearted atmosphere. Baekhyun hums along to his playlist, letting himself enjoy the warm night air and peaceful ambience. Up ahead, there’s a person leaning against the wall of his apartment complex, scrolling through his phone. He looks up as Baekhyun approaches, and the gamer’s footsteps slow considerably. He looks so familiar, and yet Baekhyun can’t completely make out his face because of the dim lighting… 

“Yixing?” Baekhyun hears himself ask. His heart begins to pound earnestly with hope. The man smiles, slips his phone into his pocket, and waits as Baekhyun walks the last few feet towards him in a daze. “What are you doing here?!” Baekhyun rips his earbuds out and throws himself at his boyfriend in excitement. Intimate, comfortable arms pull him in and warm fingers begin carding through his hair. Baekhyun melts. 

“God, I miss you.” Yixing kisses the top of Baekhyun’s forehead. “Baobei.” 

“I thought you have training,” Baekhyun murmurs into Yixing’s shirt. 

“I do. Just… come here today because you say you are home.” There’s a note of amusement in Yixing’s tone that makes Baekhyun look up. Yixing’s eyes drift to his lips, and Baekhyun rolls up onto his tiptoes to receive a gentle and sweet kiss that has him blushing pink. “Here.” Yixing stoops down to reach for a plastic bag beside him. Baekhyun hadn’t even noticed it. “For you.” 

“What?” Baekhyun looks inside the bag to see an assortment of bakery breads and treats. “Xing!” 

“You told me your favorites,” Yixing says softly, and Baekhyun’s heart positively explodes as he tiptoes upwards to kiss Yixing for the second time. The skater looks surprised, then very, very happy. He cups Baekhyun’s cheek and swipes his thumb across the soft skin under his eye tenderly.

“Do you want to come upstairs?” Baekhyun invites. “You don’t have to stay very long if you can’t.” Baekhyun looks up into his boyfriend’s eyes. Yixing can’t hide the dark bags under them, or the exhaustion that makes his shoulders tense and tight, but he looks handsome as ever, and he also does a poor job of hiding affection. “Let’s just catch up for a few minutes?” Baekhyun asks. 

“Okay.” Yixing smiles down at his gamer. “Okay.” He reaches down to pick up something from the ground, and wow, Baekhyun is really missing all sorts of details today.

“Babe, what are you holding, and why is it not my hand?” Baekhyun’s initial surprise is slowly being replaced by his normal flirtatious lines. 

“Sorry.” Yixing chuckles and reaches out to intertwine their fingers. 

“What is it, though?” Baekhyun’s naturally curious. 

“Let’s go upstairs.” 

“Xing xing!” 

“I show you soon,” Yixing promises, which mollifies Baekhyun enough to open the door to the building. When they enter the apartment together, Baekhyun sighs a little at the messiness before turning his attention to Yixing, who’s unzipping one side of the carrier. Baekhyun studies the scene, mystified. 

“Xing, what--” a small mewl interrupts him. 

“Shh, baobei.” Yixing cradles something in his hands, then stands up and turns towards Baekhyun. 

“Oh my GOSHHHH!” Every thought Baekhyun had about the Very Hot Boyfriend That He Hasn’t Seen In A Long Time standing in his apartment is  _ instantly  _ forgotten in lieu of the ball of fluff and fur in the skater’s hands. “Oh my goshhh, look at you! Oh, baby, come here, let me hold you--” Yixing carefully transfers the tiny kitten to Baekhyun’s arms, and the gamer is just gone. Baekhyun plants his ass firmly on the floor and coos indecipherably to the cat in his arms. “You’re just the prettiest thing, aren’t you? You’re so pretty, yes you are. Look at those big blue eyes. I know! I know, it’s so nice and warm here, isn’t it? Yes, you’re so cute, darling, look at you,” Yixing stands over cat and human, watching his boyfriend slowly dissolve into a pile of goo. 

“Ahem.” Yixing clears his throat after a while. Baekhyun glances up at him dismissively before returning his attention to the feline. Yixing bends down and gently places the kitten in his own arms in Baekhyun’s lap. The gamer’s jaw drops. 

“YOU GOT TWO?!” 

“Yes.” 

“OH MY GOD, BABY, COME HERE--” Baekhyun, apparently, was not referring to Yixing. The skater slides down against the wall until he comes to a sitting position and patiently watches the adorable scene. His three favorite things in one place. He even surreptitiously gets a few pictures without Baekhyun’s attention. Only after the gray and white kitten circles around Yixing’s ankle and meows at its rightful owner does Baekhyun finally turn his attention back to his boyfriend. 

“When did you get them?” Baekhyun asks, voice still unnaturally high from cooing at the cats. 

“One week ago. This is Lulu.” Yixing gestures to the gray one with big blue eyes in his own arms. “You hold Luobo.” 

“Do their names mean anything in Chinese?” 

“Lulu is because of League champion. You know.” Yixing smiles as Baekhyun’s eyes widen in affectionate surprise. “And Luobo is ‘radish’ in Mandarin.” 

“That’s so cute, Xing...” Baekhyun presses a kiss to the top of Luobo’s head, right between its ears. “What breed?” 

“Ragdoll and Great British shorthair.” Yixing points to Lulu and Luobo respectively. “They are easy to take care of.” 

“Oh, they’re so tiny,” Baekhyun’s voice trembles with affection. “They’re so cute and fluffy.” 

“I know,” Yixing laughs at the starstruck expression in Baekhyun’s eyes. “They are lovable.” He pets both hands down the length of Lulu’s back and scratches between her ears. “Nice to come home and cuddle,” Yixing murmurs. 

“Xing, don’t give me any ideas, I’m about to steal one of them,” Baekhyun cradles Luobo to his chest and pouts, giving Yixing his best puppy-eyed expression. Yixing’s gaze softens. 

“I have puppy and two cats.” 

“Woof.” Baekhyun says sarcastically, then goes back to petting Luobo. “By the way, they say if your cat approves of your significant other, then they’re a keeper,” Baekhyun announces rather matter-of-factly to Yixing. He looks pointedly at the feline curled up in his lap, purring and kneading Baekhyun’s thigh contentedly. Yixing laughs, feeling some of the mid-competition season stress ebb away as Baekhyun carefully picks Luobo up so he can scoot over to sit with his back against the wall next to Yixing and lay his head on the skater’s shoulder. Yixing turns and kisses Baekhyun’s hair.

“I already knew you were amazing.” 

The next few days for Jongin are filled with new experiences and people. As it turns out, the arena in which JGP will be held is only a five minute walk away from their hotel, thanks to Kibum’s impeccable planning. 

“It’s a skating town,” Kibum tells him matter-of-factly when they’re walking back from morning practice. Quaint shops line the streets of the town, and gorgeous, serene Lake Placid stretches out until it touches the mountainous horizon. “It exists because of its prestige from the Olympics. Lake Placid is the main tourist attraction; aside from that and skiing, there’s nothing to do here but skate.” 

Jongin slowly adjusts to the time difference, studies for his upcoming final exams way less than he should, and skates about 2-3 hours per day on practice ice. Kibum coaches him carefully on each one, monitoring his energy, strength, and mentality. For the most part, Jongin’s excited and happy. He meets lots of other Junior skaters, each representing their own country and wearing their own team jacket. Jongin wears his proudly as well, and pouts rather enviously when he is unable to understand the rudimentary conversations in English that mostly everyone else participates in. Doyoung finds himself in a similar boat, although he’s able to haphazardly translate snippets of conversations for both of them. Jongin is both pleased and flattered by the attention he gets when he manages to briefly explain that he gets to speak to Taemin on a daily basis.

“You skate with him?” At least three heads in the locker room turn to Jongin with wide, starstruck expressions. “Skate?” One of the boys from Canada--Stephen, Jongin reads from his jacket--motions with his hands. Jongin gets the gist and nods in affirmation. 

“What is he like?” Everyone wants to know eagerly.  “It must be so intimidating to train with him.” Jongin glances at Doyoung helplessly, whose face is screwed up as he struggles to translate. 

“Oh, for fuck’s sake.” Jongin curses in Korean. If only he had actually thought to pick up at least a few useful phrases… He ruffles his hair rather embarrassedly and smiles apologetically at the other skaters, who laugh and wave it off. 

“Something like… if he’s scary or not. While training, I assume.” Doyoung sighs frustratedly. 

“Well.” Jongin bites back a smile as he thinks out loud about how he woke up to Taemin’s text that he had cut his skate lace in half because he accidentally stepped on it with his blade. 

“Hyung, sorry to disappoint you, but I can’t translate that.” Doyoung says flatly, and Jongin laughs.

“Just tell them he’s amazing.”

Official practice ice for the short program is scheduled to be a day before the Junior Men’s short program event. It’s a chance to practice in costume on the competition rink and run a program. Jongin doesn’t bother with makeup, but he does wear his gorgeous short program shirt and pulls his team jacket over it. Kibum meets him in the hotel lobby as usual, and straightens Jongin’s collar as he speaks. 

“As you know, they play your programs in your skating order. So you’ll be the seventh program. Gives you about 15 minutes to warm up.” 

“Yeah.” Jongin nods. 

“Just warm everything up and be good to go by the time they announce your name.” 

Every practice session thus far hasn’t been filled to its maximum, and Jongin has only had to share the ice with 6 or 7 skaters, like he’s used to. But for official practice, the 20 skaters on the Junior Men’s roster are all shoved onto one sheet of ice. Jongin is overwhelmed the second he steps on. He’s just on his third lap around the rink when the jumps start flying; within five minutes, he has to dodge at least seven different skaters. 

“--absolute insanity,” Kibum is saying to Coach Woohyun, who’s craning his neck to keep an eye on poor Doyoung. “Don’t know why they wouldn’t just make multiple sessions according to warm-up groups. How is anyone supposed to accomplish anything on this?” Kibum gestures to the madness. 

“Ah, well, it’s JGP, you know how they are with planning.” Woohyun beckons to Doyoung as Kibum turns his attention to Jongin. 

“Do your best.” Kibum squeezes Jongin’s gloved hand. “It’s okay, alright? It’s just another practice. It’s fine if you don’t get everything done, you’ve been doing great for the whole week already.” 

“Yeah.” Jongin tries to swallow down his anxiety and nods, but there are people flying left and right, all concentrated on their own programs, with complete disregard for anyone else on the ice. The panic in the atmosphere is palpable, and it settles into Jongin as well. In a tense, high-stress environment, any and every little thing sets him off. Everyone else’s jumps and spins intimidate him. His technique becomes frantic and rushed, which means he starts falling on his jumps. And when the time comes to run his program, a Canadian skater accidentally gets in his way right before his big combination, so he has to pop it. An apology gets yelled to him over the music, but the panic is already welling up in Jongin’s chest. This is so not ideal. He was doing so well, too, but of course, he always falls apart when things really count. Why can everyone else practice so perfectly under pressure except for him? Maybe he’s just--

“Nini!” Kibum’s voice calls him back to the boards when his music ends. Jongin skates back, gasping for breath and still dodging skaters left and right. “Let’s get off,” Kibum says firmly, and Jongin looks at him bewilderedly. 

“There’s still 45 minutes--” 

“45 wasted minutes.” Kibum gestures to the door. “We’re leaving.” Jongin steps off the ice and slides his skate guards on. He lets Kibum lead him through the crowd of skaters, spectators, and vendors in the main lobby until they’re at the other side of the building, where the practice rink is located. Jongin glances at the schedule taped to the door. According to it, there’s a practice session starting in one minute. There are a few people on the ice already, but Jongin only counts five skaters. Kibum pushes open the door to the other rink and holds it for Jongin. 

“You’re paid for,” Kibum tells his student. He stands in his usual spot next to the boards, a little ways away from all the other coaches, and watches Jongin stroke a few laps on the relatively empty session. When Jongin comes back to him to receive instructions, Kibum waves him off. “Do whatever, Nini. Pretend I’m not here.” 

“I didn’t know there was a practice session on this side,” Jongin remarks quietly, fiddling with the flat seam of his shirt. 

“Neither does anyone else on that hellhole of an official practice, apparently.” Kibum shrugs. “Woohyun might join us with Doyoungie once he runs his program. Just skate, Nini.” Jongin glances up and meets his coach’s eyes. Kibum looks calm and confident, embodying the way that Jongin ought to feel. He looks unworried, like he completely trusts Jongin’s abilities and hard work. The skater’s shoulders relax. He takes a deep breath and pushes away from the boards. 

And for the next 30 minutes, Jongin simply skates. 

“Will the following skaters please introduce themselves?”   
The announcer’s voice replaces the music being played, and Jongin skates out to the middle of the ice along with four other skaters.  
“Representing Russia, Gleb Lutfullin. Representing the Republic of South Korea, Jongin Kim.”  
Jongin looks up to the small crowd in the red bleacher seats and waves, then bows low.  
“Representing Israel…”   
the announcers goes through all the names, and each skater acknowledges the audience at their turn.   
“Skaters, your warm-up begins now.”  


JUNIOR MEN - SHORT PROGRAM, STARTING ORDER

1 |  Mykhailo RUDKOVSKYI  
---|---  
2 |  Shun SATO  
3 |  Matyas BELOHRADSKY  
4 |  Stephen GOGOLEV  
5 |  Fang-Yi LIN  
6 |  Gleb LUTFULLIN  
7 |  Jongin KIM  
8 |  Nikita KOVALENKO  
9 |  Harrison BAIN  
10 |  Casper JOHANSSON  
11 |  Joseph KLEIN  
12 |  Heung Lai ZHAO  
13 |  Vansh BHATIA  
14 |  Matvei VETLUGIN  
15 |  Ze Zeng FANG  
16 |  Dongyoung KIM  
17 |  Ryan DUNK  
18 |  Muhammad Dwi Rizqy APOLIANTO  
19 |  Beres CLEMENTS  
20 |  Ilia MALININ  
  
www.isu.org

Since Jongin skates seventh, he’ll be second to skate in his group, which Jongin is grateful for. He doesn’t think he could stomach sitting through an entire warm-up group--ever since he woke up, his heart has been beating double time, as if he’s just downed six shots of espresso. As a result, all of Jongin’s jumps on warm-up are jittery, even though they’re landed. Jongin tries a Triple Axel, and it’s so off-kilter that he ends up popping it to a Single. He looks at Kibum, but his coach signals to move on. Jongin pulls himself into his combination spin and shakes his legs out as the announcer calls time. 

“Relax, honey,” Kibum tells him as the warm-up ends. He looks classy today for Jongin’s JGP debut. There are just as many cameras trained on the former Olympian and World-renowned coach as there are on Jongin. Junior level competitions are not highly televised to the entire world, but within the skating community, there’s always talk about young potential. It’s surreal to know that Jongin is one of them, and he can acutely feel the pressure on his shoulders, even if he doesn’t have much to his name just yet. Jongin presses his gloved hands to his chest and stares at Kibum with wide, worried eyes. 

“Come here.” Kibum leads Jongin to sit down on a small bench just inside of the tunnel under the bleachers that leads to the locker rooms and warm-up area. “Just sit and breathe for a little while.” Kibum remains standing while Jongin stares at the tiny hole in his gloves and inhales lungfuls of cold air. Time seems to slow down and speed up all at once; it seems like an eternity and a second until Kibum gestures for Jongin to stand up and get moving again. The coach takes Jongin’s team jacket, adjusts Jongin’s costume, and gives him an approving nod for his hairstyling. 

“Handsome, Nini. You look good out there as well.” Kibum keeps up a constant stream of positive, nonsense chatter as they walk back out and the cameras focus on them. Jongin listens to him halfheartedly, but he is partially grateful for the attention diversion. When time comes for Jongin to get on the ice though, Kibum falls silent and pats him lightly on the shoulder. 

As the judges deliberate on the last skater’s score and review elements, Jongin has about two minutes during which he’s allowed to skate around and warm-up once more. He strokes a fast, powerful lap, then pulls into a simple spin. Afterwards he holds a long, strong landing position and makes his way back to Kibum, who holds out his hands for Jongin to grip. 

“Three deep breaths, Nini.” Inhale. Exhale. Inhale. Exhale. Inhale. Hold your breath. Jongin looks at Kibum, who focuses entirely on him. Exhale. His coach squeezes his hands. “I just want you to go out there and skate,” Kibum murmurs to Jongin. “You don’t have anything to worry about. You know as well as I do that you can do everything you want to do today.” Jongin nods as his heart thumps faster in his chest. “Just do it.” 

“He skates on behalf of the Republic of South Korea.” The announcer’s voice comes on after the scores for Lutfullin pop up, and Jongin feels a chill run down his spine. That’s the first time he’s ever skated for a region larger than his skating club. The knowledge is both exhilarating and terrifying. Kibum squeezes Jongin’s hands one last time, then pushes him away. 

“Skate, honey.” 

“Please put your hands together for Jongin Kim!” Jongin presents to the crowd and the polite applause. Somewhere back home, Yixing is sitting next to Minho, Sehun, and Jinki in their apartment after workouts, and all four of them are whooping so obnoxiously that they’ll probably get a noise complaint. Jonghyun lets Taemin take a break from studying for his finals, and both of them crowd excitedly in front of Taemin’s computer. Chanyeol and Jongdae stop trying to kill each other for just two minutes. Kyungsoo washes the dishes and watches the livestream at the same time, while Minseok curls up in Luhan’s arms and watches Jongin on the TV with keen eyes. Jongin’s parents and sisters are watching, too, cheering him on from back home. Jongin takes his starting position, mind buzzing with thoughts about everything that he needs to think about. He’s never felt so many pairs of eyes on him before; so much pressure. 

I’ve been here before… 

Jongin’s limbs move through the air subconsciously as the first notes of his music sound through the rink. 

But always hit the floor… 

I’ve spent a lifetime running, and I always get away, 

But with you I’m feeling something that makes me want to stay… 

Jongin needs speed.  _ Faster. Bend your knees. Shoulders down. Head up.  _ Remembering everything is so overwhelming. What’s the first jump? Jongin’s mind blanks as his body instinctually skates through choreography that he has trained everyday. Oh, right. Triple Axel; Jongin tenses up right before the jump. Why is he going so fast? He panics, and as soon as he does, he knows that it’s over. His Triple turns into a Double, and his landing position isn’t fast and smooth, but more like a desperate fight for control as he steps out of the jump. 

_ Too late, too late, too late-- _ Jongin’s hands are stiff and trembling as he clasps them together. He needs to stop dwelling. Keep moving. Is he behind the music? Jongin lands the Triple Loop with a nice, strong landing. When did that happen?  _ Keep moving,  _ Jongin urges himself on. His thighs are starting to burn from exertion, and he can feel his chest tightening in both panic and lack of oxygen.

If I risk it all, could you break my fall? 

How do I live? 

How do I breathe? 

When you’re not here, I’m suffocating… 

Combination spin number one is slow; way too slow. Jongin fights to hold every position for enough revolutions to not get the spin level downgraded, but everything comes at a cost. God, he’s so drained, he should not be this tired right before his biggest combination jump. How many mistakes has he made so far? How many points has he given up? Once again, Jongin is up in the air before he even registers it, and scratches hard on the landing of his Triple Lutz.  _ No, no, no-- _ he can’t give this one away as well.  _ Sink into your knees. Wait for the timing, wait, wait--now.  _ Jongin squeezes tight in his rotation position and completes the Triple Toe with every last bit of fight he has to muster. Even so, the ice is harsh and shockingly cold when the palm of his hand makes contact with the frozen surface during the landing. 

_ It’s not a fall! Keep going!  _ The voice in Jongin’s panicked, scatterbrained mind screams, then goes silent as he focuses on artistry for his step sequence. Jongin gazes up at the highest seats of the stadium and reaches with outstretched fingertips and pointed toes up to them. 

I want to feel love run through my blood 

Tell me is this where I give it all up? 

Having completed all his jumps, Jongin finally starts skating with some semblance of collectedness. His second combination spin is fast and perfect, exactly like how it is in practice. 

For you, I have to risk it all… 

Jongin’s last spin is also tight and well-executed, but he barely even feels it through the fire in his lungs and legs. Every position makes his muscles shake from overexertion. 

‘Cause the writing’s on the wall. 

The music fades out just as Jongin twirls around out of his third and last spin to hit his final position, reaching out for the judges table, still chasing after his mysterious lover. His chest heaves up and down as he gasps for air, and he winces as he clutches at the stitch in his chest. The fog of competing lifts from his mind, and Jongin tilts his head a little in appraisal of his own performance as cheers and applause fill the stadium. It wasn’t perfect by any means, but he didn’t fall. He’s not upset, but it could be much better. He bows to all four sides of the rink before being greeted by Kibum’s gruff one-armed hug. 

“Not bad.” Kibum drapes Jongin’s team jacket over his shoulders as Jongin slides his skate guards on. “Stayed on your feet, but you were SO stiff through that whole performance, sweetheart. It was very clear you were not in love. Told you to just relax and skate, you don’t have to worry so much about the elements.” 

“I know.” Jongin grimaces as they make their way to the kiss-and-cry bench to wait for his scores. “Too nervous.” 

“We’ll work on it.” Kibum pats Jongin’s hand. “Overall, you did good.” 

“The score for Jongin Kim, please.” Jongin’s heart begins to pound, although he’s not sure if it’s from physical exertion or anticipation.  “His technical element score is 31.89. His program components score is 30.25 for a total score of 61.14. Jongin is currently in fourth place.”

CURRENT STANDINGS

1 |  Shun SATO | 79.19  
---|---|---  
2 |  Stephen GOGOLEV | 78.85  
3 |  Gleb LUTFULLIN | 66.27  
4 |  Jongin KIM | 61.14  
5 |  Matyas BELOHRADSKY | 55.49  
  
www.isu.org

“Not bad.” Kibum shrugs and nods, a genuine and mellow reaction in front of the cameras. Jongin just smiles politely and waves at the camera before both of them get up and retreat to the back. 

“Not a personal best.” Jongin bites his lip, slightly disappointed in himself. 

“Oh, I wouldn’t expect so much.” Kibum keeps a comforting hand on Jongin’s back. “It’s a JGP, they score very harshly compared to local competitions like Cherry Blossom. You did very well to just break 60 points at your first international, having popped your Axel.”

“I get so nervous.” Jongin sighs shakily. “My thoughts are all over the place.” 

“Nervousness stems from a lack of confidence, Nini. And lack of confidence stems from inconsistency. Your competitive results tend to bounce up and down.” Kibum tells Jongin matter-of-factly. “We’ve fixed a lot of your technique in the past year, now we just need to work on the part that counts. It’s a process, but we’ll get there. Hey, hey.” Kibum stops Jongin as he realizes that his student is holding back tears. He’s not crying because of his performance, Kibum knows. It’s actually out of relief, because the crushing pressure that Jongin feels is finally somewhat relieved for the time being, even though he has to compete again the day after tomorrow. “Sit down,” Kibum directs, pulling a random folding chair from the side of the wall and pushing Jongin down into it. Jongin takes a deep, shuddery breath and dabs at his eyes gingerly. “You did good, honey,” Kibum tells him gently, but firmly. “I’m proud of you, okay?” Jongin nods and tries to explain himself, but Kibum shushes him. “Don’t worry. You just take the rest of the day easy, alright? Nice to compete in the morning, isn’t it?” Jongin nods shakily in agreement; it’s just past 9 am, and he’s done for the day, except for a few hours of practice in the afternoon. “There’s no need to stress yourself out so much for every performance,” Kibum soothes, one hand rubbing Jongin’s back comfortingly. Jongin sighs and calms down a little. From the stadium, he can hear the next skater’s score being announced. It isn’t as high as his.

“Nini!” Taemin’s excited voice comes in through the speaker, and Jongin smiles, flopping onto his untidy bed with shower-damp hair. “I’m so glad you called!” 

“Why?” Jongin muses, already laughing a little at the elder’s enthusiasm. 

“You saved me from studying,” Taemin tells him with overdramatic gratefulness. “My mother and Jjong-hyung are making me start prep early because Grand Prix is right around the CSAT final exam.”

“Relatable.” Jongin sighs. “Not the Grand Prix part, just the ‘starting prep early’ part.” 

“We all watched you skate,” his best friend informs him, and he sounds proud. “You held on to the Triple Lutz-Triple Toe like your life depended on it. I’ve never seen someone fight for a jump like that.” 

“I had NO speed going into the Toe, Taem.” Jongin chuckles. 

“You really didn’t, I was praying that you were just going to stay calm and take your time. Ah, I was so nervous for you,” Taemin giggles. “I get so jittery watching other people skate.” 

“I was an absolute train wreck right before I skated.” Jongin picks at the bedsheet with his free hand. “My entire body was shaking.” 

“Did you meditate?” 

“Oh, shit.” Jongin’s blood runs cold. “I forgot to.” 

“Meditate before your free skate,” Taemin suggests. He doesn’t sound offended at all about Jongin’s forgetfulness--why would he be? “It’ll help.” 

“I will,” Jongin promises. 

“So you ended up in 8th after the short program?” Taemin murmurs after a minute of comfortable silence. 

“Yeah. I’m just… happy to be in the Top 10.” 

JUNIOR MEN, STANDINGS AFTER SHORT PROGRAM

1 |  Shun SATO | 79.19  
---|---|---  
2 |  Stephen GOGOLEV | 78.85  
3 |  Ilia MALININ | 71.34  
4 |  Joseph KLEIN | 66.52  
5 |  Gleb LUTFULLIN | 66.27  
6 |  Ryan DUNK | 63.89  
7 |  Beres CLEMENTS | 63.38  
8 |  Jongin KIM | 61.14  
9 |  Matvei VETLUGIN | 57.25  
10 |  Matyas BELOHRADSKY | 55.49  
11 |  Dongyoung KIM | 55.22  
12 |  Fang-Yi LIN | 52.78  
13 |  Nikita KOVALENKO | 51.95  
14 |  Mykhailo RUDKOVSKYI | 46.39  
15 |  Casper JOHANSSON | 43.63  
16 |  Heung Lai ZHAO | 43.31  
17 |  Harrison BAIN | 40.23  
18 |  Ze Zeng FANG | 39.68  
19 |  Muhammad Dwi Rizqy APOLIANTO | 29.29  
20 |  Vansh BHATIA | 29.13  
  
www.isu.org

“8th is amazing, Nini.” Taemin says sincerely. “You’re doing so well for your first JGP.” 

“Says the guy who won his first one,” Jongin murmurs.

“Ahhh, don’t,” Taemin waves that away impatiently. “I’m talking about you.” Jongin bites his lip and deliberates before speaking slowly.

“I’m not… upset…” Jongin confesses to Taemin. “I just… feel like I could have placed higher if I had just skated a little better. I feel like I’m capable of doing more.” 

“You are, Nini.” Taemin asserts. “If you competed like you practice, you would be in third right now.” 

“Shun Sato skated well,” Jongin recalls the young Japanese skater who is currently leading the event. He’d skated second in the first warm-up group--extremely early in the event--but nobody had managed to push him out of first place. 

“Oh, he just has good jump technique.” Taemin’s voice sounds almost dismissive. “Not much artistry in his skating. I think you’re a prettier and better skater than him.” 

“O-oh.” Jongin hides his uncontainable smile behind the back of his hand, even though there’s nobody else in the room. 

“It’s true!” Taemin insists cutely, and Jongin is so, so soft and easy for him, it’s almost comical. “Your skating skills are improving, your movements are so mature and graceful, and your expressions are so breathtaking. You’re beautiful on the ice.” Jongin tries to speak, but all that comes out of his throat is a warbled sound of happiness. “Nini? You still there?” 

“Hhh--yeah.” Jongin clears his throat. “Yeah,” he says softly.  _ Taemin called you beautiful, Taemin called you breathtaking, Taemin called you graceful. Taemin, Taemin, Taemin. T-- _

“You should show them what you’re capable of.” Taemin sounds like he’s lying down now; his voice is softer and muted, but just as lovely as ever. “Show them what I see everyday.” 

“I want to.” Jongin’s heart begins to quicken at the thought of putting out a perfect free skate in two days’ time. 

“Then do it.” Taemin encourages him. “There’s nothing stopping you. Skate like you want the whole world to see you.” His voice drops lower. “I saw that spirit today, when you fought for that combination jump. ‘No matter what, I have to stay on my feet.’ You need to have that mentality for your entire program. That’s what makes a good competitor.” Jongin nods slowly as Taemin doles out advice. 

“Is that how you feel when you compete?” Jongin asks. Taemin is quiet for a minute before he answers this one.

“I feel as if I’m possessed when I’m competing.” Taemin’s voice sounds like it comes from far away, as if his mind has suddenly slipped into that sphere of focus he creates whenever he’s out on the ice. “I want people to forget that there’s anyone else to watch.” He smiles dreamily, as if he’s imagining himself out on that empty rink with all eyes locked onto his every movement. “When it’s my turn, don’t you dare think about anyone else.” Jongin swallows hard and shifts slightly.  _ I would never.  _ How does he tell Taemin that he already has Jongin’s full, undivided attention? 

“You’re amazing.” Jongin settles on that, but it’s not nearly enough to encompass all the things he feels for this extraordinary boy. He hears Taemin’s happy giggle on the other side though, so it’s enough for the time being. 

“Just a little insane.” 

“Well, maybe that, too,” Jongin admits. “But aren’t we all?” 

“For sure.” Silence stretches out between the two of them. Jongin glances to the pile of textbooks on his desk. He should study… or he could go ask Doyoung if he wants to sunbathe at the lake. His attention snaps back to Taemin when he hears a shriek and then a whine. 

“You look like you’re being productive.” Jonghyun’s threatening voice comes in over the speaker.

“But it’s Niniiiiiii,” Taemin’s pout is evident in his tone. “I’m just talking to him about JGP!” 

“Have you finished your physics problems?” 

“I can figure out my physics problems tomorrow! Hyunggg…”

“Lee Taemin, do not make me confiscate your phone like you’re eleven years old.” 

“Hyung, this is pointless.” Taemin clears his throat and begins reading what sounds like one of his physics problems. “‘A spinning ice skater with their arms and legs stretched out has a moment of inertia i = 3 kg/m^2 and is spinning with an angular speed of Ω = 1.5 revolutions per second.’ I don’t think Kibum cares about my inertia, hyung. I think he just wants me to stop talking and start spinning,” Taemin complains as Jongin wheezes with laughter on the other side of the world. 

“And I would like you to stop talking and find the moment of inertia for i-2.” Jonghyun sighs wearily. “Tell Jongin I told him he did amazing, and that you have to go.” 

“Nini…” Taemin turns to his best friend for help when Jonghyun remains firm. Jongin is too busy laughing to rescue Taemin from his inevitable demise. 

“Study, Taemin-ah.” Jongin finally calms down and gently coaxes the elder to sit back down at his desk. “Thank you for your advice.” 

“You’re going to leave me here?” Taemin whines. “Niniiii…”

“Oh…” Jongin’s heart melts. “You should listen to Jonghyun-hyung…” 

“LEE TAEMIN!” Jonghyun barks with much more ferocity than Jongin could ever muster. 

“Okay, okay! Nini, I’m about to get eaten alive. Text me about practice, okay?” 

“Will do.” Jongin smiles. “Have fun.” 

“Hellooooo,” a cheery voice greets Kibum right in his ear just as he’s looking at the rows of printed competition results hung up on the wall, and he jumps so hard that his shoulder smacks the other person’s chin. “Ow.” 

“Don’t DO that,” Kibum hisses, turning around to find Woohyun standing inches away from him. 

“What event is this?” Woohyun steps next to Kibum and eyes the final standings next to him. 

“Ladies short program results. Doyoung here?” Kibum asks Woohyun, and the other coach shakes his head ‘no’. “Did you catch sight of Jongin on your way in?” 

“You don’t know where he is?” 

“He said he was going to spectate ice dance,” Kibum murmurs, answering his own question. 

“Gotcha.” Woohyun looks Kibum up and down. “That shirt is not keeping you warm.” 

“Figure skating competitions are second rate fashion shows.” Kibum shifts his weight onto his other hip. “You of all people should know that.” 

“Show off.” 

“I outright refuse to be caught dead in some boring black puffy winter jacket for every event ever.” Kibum scoffs as the two coaches slowly walk away from the results and towards the arena where the ice dance couples are circling the ice. “Especially when I show my face here 3 times a day.” It’s not even an exaggeration. 

“Same.” Woohyun ticks his schedule off his fingers. “Competed in the morning--” 

“Doyoung did pretty good, by the way.” 

“I told him as much, but he’s disappointed,” Woohyun shrugs. A bad fall on a Triple Flip-Triple Toe combination and a Triple Axel pop to a Single had left Doyoung in 11th place after the short. 

“There’s always the free skate,” Kibum points out. 

“That’s what I said. Anyway, he competed in the morning. Then we went to practice in the afternoon. And now I’m here because I had nothing better to do.” Woohyun sighs and flashes his credential to the guard standing outside of the coaches entry to the rink. Kibum copies him. 

“I think Nini just doesn’t want to study. Poor boy.” Kibum chuckles, then crosses his arms as they enter the rink from the side. The bleachers would probably have been a warmer choice, but from their exclusive entrypoint, they can stand right up against the sideboards and watch the competition. Nobody pays them any attention. 

“How’s he feeling after the short?” Woohyun inquires. 

“Oh, he’s alright. Had a few tears here and there, but he’s doing good. Holding out under pressure.” Kibum nods satisfactorily as he eyes the dancer couples’ program. 

“Is he faring well with Taemin?” Here goes the gossip session. Kibum laughs quietly under the sound of the program music.

“I’d say so.” Kibum’s lips curl up into a mischievous smile. “They sure talk a lot.” 

“Kim Kibum, are you sure you should be so involved with your students’ love interests?” Woohyun teases, and Kibum just smirks. 

“I’m not interested at all. It’s just that as a coach, I have to be cognizant of other factors that may affect my skaters’ performance capabilities.” Kibum’s smile becomes fond. “And Nini is quite sensitive to change.”

“So you’ve told me.” Woohyun claps as the program ends; Kibum follows suit. “Nice straight-line step sequence.” 

“Not bad,” Kibum concedes. “You know, I always tell Minseok he should have pursued ice dance.” 

“He didn’t?” Woohyun looks surprised. 

“He passed all his solo and partnered ice dance tests, but he never competed.” 

“Gotcha. I might ask him next season to choreograph Yuta’s short program, by the way.” 

“He’ll be happy to do it.” Kibum nods. Choreographers and technical specialist coaches (like Kyungsoo) often form a training team with a main coach, but that doesn’t mean they can’t take on their own skaters and work with other teams as well. 

“Sounds good.” They watch the rest of the group in relative silence, save for occasional comments on either the skaters or the general competition. The cold eventually seeps into Kibum’s button-down shirt, but he refuses to acknowledge it. He’ll warm up outside anyway. 

“Good group,” Woohyun says as they walk out of the arena together and back into the lobby. “Oh--” Kibum turns to look where Woohyun has caught sight of Jongin chatting with a small circle of skaters. He has taken off his warm, fluffy brown jacket that he wore to the rink, and is standing in skinny jeans and a black shirt that shows off his arms. Woohyun mutters something under his breath to the extent of ‘like coach, like skater’. Kibum rolls his eyes. 

“I heard that.” 

“Why are you both wearing skinny jeans at the rink if you’re only here to spectate?” Woohyun scolds. “Nobody is looking at you! They’re all watching the competition.” 

“You try and tell me my ass does not look good in these jeans, Nam Woohyun.” Kibum scoffs, ever so sassy. “Also.” Kibum raises an eyebrow pointedly. Woohyun looks back at the scene, then turns around to hide his laughter. Jongin’s talking to a girl, and by the looks of it, there’s definitely some sweet talking happening. Kibum watches with increasing amusement as Jongin clutches his jacket closer to himself and smiles at whatever the girl is saying. By a random stroke of luck, Jongin’s eyes look up and dart around the crowded lobby, then catch Kibum’s gaze. The skater visibly freezes up, looking downright horrified at having been caught by his coach as he’s being flirted with. Kibum turns around and slings an arm around Woohyun’s shoulders to walk away, but not before winking at his student. 

“Nobody is looking at you,” Kibum imitates Woohyun teasingly. “They’re all watching the competition.”

“Shut up. Your skater’s a tease.”

“Don’t you dare call my skater a tease!” 

Back in Korea, Kibum’s absence is taking its toll on Ki-gang. Yixing lets loose a guttural scream of happiness when he steps onto the ice, and Minho’s hysterical laugh echoes around the rink as he plugs his phone into the aux cord. Jinki is already occupying a corner of the rink, making up a funny little dance to the music that blasts out from the rink speakers.

“TASTE!” Yixing screeches to Minho, already beginning to dance his way towards Jinki even though his arms are full with his skate guards, jackets, and water bottle. 

“MY LADYYYYYY!” Minho yells back, sprinting to the middle of the rink and taking position; Yixing drops all his stuff on the ice to catch the beat in time. His water bottle goes rolling across the frictionless surface, forgotten.

Ring ding dong, ring ding dong 

Ring diggy ding diggy ding ding ding-- 

“AHHHH!” Sehun shrieks as he bursts through the doors of the stadium. In his excitement to join in on the fun, he completely forgets to take his skate guards off before stepping onto the ice. The youngest skater remains on his feet for all of half a second before his legs split in two different directions and he goes sprawling at the entrance of the rink. Minho collapses; Taemin happily throws his ass in a circle; Yixing and Jinki keep dancing in the corner. 

Fantastic (fantastic) fantastic (fantastic)

Elastic (elastic) elastic (elastic) 

“Oh my,” is Minseok’s serene comment when he glides onto the ice to see half of South Korea’s international figure skating team and China’s 5-time National Medalist in utter and complete disarray. “I see I have my work cut out for me this morning.”

“I call you butterfly,” Minho sings obnoxiously, lying spread-eagled on his back in the middle of the rink. 

“As the days go by,” Minseok hums, gracefully skating past his student to set down his iced coffee at the barrier. Sehun finally tugs his plastic skate guards off of his blades and pushes himself to his feet, looking thoroughly disgruntled. Taemin moonwalks across the ice over to Minho and sprays a massive wave of snow over his hyung, who squawks in protest. “Good morning, Soo.” Minseok smiles and claps his colleague on the back as the jump specialist makes his way to the boards as well. Kyungsoo just sighs wearily, much to Minseok’s rising amusement. 

“Minseok!” Jinki calls, and the coach looks up to see all five skaters lined up in front of the plexiglass barrier where Jonghyun stands in the bleachers. Sehun and Taemin have their arms around each other and are swaying back and forth, back and forth, knocking into Jinki’s shoulders every time. “Last chorus, c’mon,” Jinki persuades, and Minseok steps off of the sidelines to join his skaters. “Kyungsoo!” The jump coach only takes his phone out and starts recording the six of them. 

“Ready, ready, ready--”

“FIVE, SIX, SEVEN, EIGHT--” 

“AYYYYY!” Taemin points to Jonghyun, who points right back at the skaters as they launch into the choreography. 

Ring ding dong, ring ding dong 

Ring diggy ding diggy ding ding ding 

Ring ding dong, ring ding dong 

Ring diggy ding diggy ding ding ding-- 

“Taemin-ah. Why,” Jongin complains loudly, the first thing he says when Taemin picks up his call. Doyoung looks up at Jongin and giggles. He’s sprawled sideways at the desk chair in Jongin’s hotel room and scrolling through his phone in pajamas. “Why do I miss out on all the fun things,” Jongin’s voice tips up into a whine. Taemin’s throaty laugh spills out. 

“Did you see the video?” 

“I WANNA JOIN,” Jongin pouts as Taemin laughs harder. “Why am I stuck here babysitting Kibum and competing while you get to dance to ‘Ring Ding Dong’ with Minseok-coachnim?” 

“Babysitting Ki--” Taemin’s voice trickles out and varying shouts of protest come through the speaker. 

“Is that Nini?!” Jongin hears Jinki asking before the phone is supposedly passed to him and his voice rings out loud and clear. “My baby!” 

“Excuse me,” Sehun complains in the back. 

“Hyung!” Jongin finds himself smiling even though he’s not actually with the rest of the team in the locker room post-morning practice. 

“It’s pretty late for you,” Jinki fusses, and Jongin’s heart swells. “How are you doing? You must be tired after official practice for the free skate today, right?” 

“I just ran my program and got off. They make all 20 of us practice on the same sheet of ice, hyung.” 

“What.” Jinki sounds scandalized. “What.” 

“It’s a fuckfest, hyung.” Jongin sighs. “Doyoungie nearly got run over today.” 

“WHAT happened to Doyoung?” Minho is there and trying to wrestle the phone from Jinki in an instant. 

“He can hear you just fine without you holding the phone,” Jinki says sensibly while Jongin beckons to Doyoung. 

“He called me, not you. I wanna talk to him,” Taemin whines, which makes Jongin very happy. 

“Doyoung’s here, actually. We were chilling before bed,” Jongin tells his hyungs.

“Doyoungie!” 

“Yeah, hyung,” Doyoung answers Minho somewhat shyly. 

“Listen, if anyone tries to run you over, you just stand in their way during their program, alright?” 

“Mincho,” Jinki scolds, but Minho’s good-natured laugh indicates that he’s only joking. Doyoung pats down his hair nervously. 

“It was an accident, we were both skating backwards.” 

“It’s an accident that you’re skating through their jump entry, too,” Minho replies, which sends Jongin and Doyoung into a fit of laughter. 

“I’ll try it next time, hyung,” Doyoung promises.

“Same goes for you, Nini. Hey, nice Triple-Triple yesterday, by the way. Really hung onto that landing there, I’m very proud of you.” 

“Yes!” Yixing’s voice gets caught by the speaker as well. “Was good, Nini!” 

“Thank you!” Jongin beams; he’s never felt so happy about a messy Triple-Triple combination. Small steps of improvement are just as important as his textbook-perfect landings.

“Sehunnie, wanna say something to them?” Minho offers the phone to the youngest skater. 

“Hah, you have to put up with Kibum.” 

“I hate you,” Jongin deadpans with zero menace. 

“Hyung!” Taemin interjects himself into the conversation. “I want.”

“Alright, alright, sheesh. All yours, Taeminnie.” Minho clears his throat. “Listen, both of you--do well--kick some JGP ass--fuck Lake Placid up--” 

“Alright, hyung.,“ Jongin acquiesces. 

“And never mind the medals, you have to go to that ice cream place down the street!” Minho calls as the phone is ripped from his hands. “Kibum and Woohyun never have to know!” 

“Thanks, hyung.” Doyoung chuckles. 

“Nini,” Taemin’s voice gives away the fact that he’s smiling. 

“Sup. I’m still jealous, Taemin-ah.” 

“Just wait until Chinese Nationals,” Taemin promises. “Yixing-hyung will be gone, and then it’ll be all fun and games.” 

“I suppose.” Jongin concedes as Doyoung slides off the bed and back into his seat.

“In the meantime, though, thank you for your selfless sacrifice~” the elder singsongs happily. 

“Hmph.” Jongin pulls his legs closer to his chest and wraps his free arm around them. “It looks so fun back home,” Jongin complains. 

“Cheer up. We’re all missing you, too. And competing is fun in its own way, isn’t it?” Taemin asks. 

“Yeah,” Jongin admits. Taemin’s right. The feeling of performing, getting to explore new cities, meeting up with so many other skaters and coaches--every competition is exciting. After all, being here, wearing a Team jacket--isn’t this what Jongin has dreamed of and trained for for so many years? Lake Placid gives him a head rush that is irreplaceable with any other feeling in the world. Competing is something uniquely special to Jongin, as it is to every skater. “I’m having fun here, too, Taem.” 

“I know. I’m kind of jealous that your season starts so early. Ahhh, I want to compete,” Taemin pines. 

“Switch places with me,” Jongin offers. “I’d still rather be fucking it up to ‘Ring Ding Dong’.” 

“I will gladly skate your program for you. I don’t have to do any Quads.” Taemin sighs cutely, and Jongin fights off a blush because Doyoung is still in the room, and he doesn’t want  _ everyone  _ to know he simps for his teammate. 

“You skate a MEAN ‘One-Winged Angel’ free skate with five Quads,” Jongin praises. 

“Really?” 

“I mean it. You’re beautiful when you skate, Taemin-ah.” Jongin says it quietly, but Doyoung still looks up and raises an eyebrow at him teasingly. So much for not exposing himself. Jongin rolls his eyes while Taemin bites his lip to contain his smile. 

“Thank you, Nini. You’re sweet.” 

“A-ah.” Heat floods his cheeks so suddenly that he can’t control himself. 

“You’re going to do amazing tomorrow.” 

“Am I?” Jongin grumbles. 

“You will!” Taemin tells him earnestly. “You’ll be amazing no matter what.” God, Taemin has to stop  _ saying  _ these things, Jongin thinks, breathing going erratic. He might do something stupid, like confess his love. 

“Alright, alright. Are you taking off your skates right now?” 

“Yep. I thought it was going to be difficult, since I can only use one hand, but it’s going quite well.” 

“I guess it helps when you do the same things for 15 years,” Jongin concedes, to which Taemin agrees. “I should sleep now,” Jongin murmurs reluctantly. “Just… wanted to talk to you before bed.” 

“Aww. Yeah, it’s late.” Taemin fumbles at the zipper of his jacket with one hand. “Good night, Nini bear. Good luck tomorrow!” He giggles as Jongin stutters. 

“Good night, Taem.” The younger skater waits until Taemin hangs up before lowering his phone from his ear. Doyoung gives him the side-eye. 

“He’s pretty cute.” 

“Shut up.” Jongin’s cheeks flush pink. 

“It’s okay.” Doyoung stretches out lazily in the chair. “I’d hit on him, too, especially if I got to train with him everyday.” 

“He’s just…” Jongin gives up all pretense and sighs, long and loud. His hands wave around in the air helplessly. “Perfect.” 

“Facts.” Doyoung does a slow, appreciative nod, but then purses his lips in contemplation. “Actually, I think Nathan Chen is cuter.” 

“Okay, you have no taste,” Jongin announces, fixing Doyoung with a scandalized look. “None.” 

“Chen is cuter,” Doyoung scoffs. “He’s got that American vibe. It’s hot.” 

“Keep telling yourself that. I saw you stalking Taemin’s fansite photos in the locker room this morning.” Jongin rolls his eyes as Doyoung slumps into the chair.

“You know who’s incontestably cute though?” He turns and looks at Jongin with a small smile playing at the corner of his lips. Jongin speaks at the same time as the younger skater. 

“Yuzuru Hanyu.”

“He’s HOT,” Doyoung groans. 

“His ‘Parisian Walkways’ short program at Sochi?” Jongin gushes. 

“STOPPP.”

“And don’t get me started on ‘Seimei’--”

“I would pay good money to have him land that signature Triple Axel on me,” Doyoung says quite seriously, and Jongin bursts into laughter. 

“Mood…” Jongin relates so hard. “But why are you complaining? Changmin-sunbae dotes on you, you lucky ass.”

“I have his Olympic jacket in my hotel room,” Doyoung brags.

“He gave it to you?!” Jongin sits up instantly. He’s only a little jealous. 

“He said it’s good luck for JGP. He is literally the sweetest hyung--” Jongin swings a pillow in his direction. 

“Stop thirsting after Hanyu and Chen,” Jongin scolds. “You have Changmin-sunbae. Leave some for the rest of us.” 

“They’re there for you to look at!” Doyoung protests. “But it doesn’t matter, because you happen to simp for the guy who isn’t even cuter than--” 

“I don’t,” Jongin declares loudly, “want to hear another WORD out of you.” 

“No! Listen! Nathan--” 

“If you defile the relative attractiveness of Lee Taemin one more time, I will hit you.” 

“Obviously you’ve never appreciated Nathan’s ‘Nemesis’ program, hyung. Don’t tell me that--” The pillow in Jongin’s hands goes flying across the room and hits Doyoung square in the face. 

“How can you save Taemin’s ‘Slave’ photos to your Pinterest board, but rank Nathan above him?” Jongin shrieks, then yelps as Doyoung chucks the pillow back at him. It lands in a sad little heap in Jongin’s lap. “I bet you think Hanyu is cuter than Taemin, too.” 

“No,” Doyoung denies the allegation stoutly, because he’s also easy. “Taemin-sunbae is cuter than him.” 

“Okay.” Jongin concedes. “So you have some taste.”

“Senior skater boys.” The younger skater gives up arguing and sighs wistfully. “They’re all so dreamy.” 

“Ugh, I knowwww.” 

JUNIOR MEN - FREE SKATING, STARTING ORDERSHORT PROGRAM

1 |  Muhammad Dwi Rizqy APOLIANTO | 19 | 29.29  
---|---|---|---  
2 |  Ze Zeng FANG | 18 | 39.68  
3 |  Harrison BAIN | 17 | 40.23  
4 |  Vansh BHATIA | 20 | 29.13  
5 |  Heung Lai ZHAO | 16 | 43.31  
6 |  Casper JOHANSSON | 15 | 43.63  
7 |  Nikita KOVALENKO | 13 | 51.95  
8 |  Mykhailo RUDKOVSKYI | 14 | 46.39  
9 |  Fang-Yi LIN | 12 | 52.78  
10 |  Dongyoung KIM | 11 | 55.22  
11 |  Matyas BELOHRADSKY | 10 | 55.49  
12 |  Matvei VETLUGIN | 9 | 57.25  
13 |  Beres CLEMENTS | 7 | 63.38  
14 |  Jongin KIM | 8 | 61.14  
15 |  Ryan DUNK | 6 | 63.89  
16 |  Gleb LUTFULLIN | 5 | 66.27  
17 |  Joseph KLEIN | 4 | 66.52  
18 |  Ilia MALININ | 3 | 71.34  
19 |  Shun SATO | 1 | 79.19  
20 |  Stephen GOGOLEV | 2 | 78.85  
  
www.isu.org

“Nice and easy, keep your upper body still,” Kibum comments to Jongin as they warm up together. There’s about an hour left until Jongin has to compete--he’s second to last in the third warm-up group for the free skate. “That’s it.” For the most part, Kibum is pretty quiet, simply observing Jongin jog around the warm-up room, stretch, and do his off-ice rotations. He only speaks to offer minor corrections. “How are you feeling?” 

“Pretty good,” Jongin offers. “More relaxed than I was for the short program.” His heart is beating fast, but he’s pretty sure it’s because of the exercise. The nerves haven’t gotten to him yet, even though the first group for his event is already warming up. 

“Awesome.” Kibum checks his watch. “Take your time,” he murmurs. “Do you need anything? Water, tissues…?” 

“I’m okay.” Jongin attempts another Triple rotation and lands neatly. Kibum nods approvingly. 

“Alright. I’m going to go check to see if they’re ahead of or behind schedule. Text me if you need something, okay?” 

“Yeah, I’m just… just gonna meditate.” Jongin tells Kibum, half-expecting him to be surprised. His coach just shrugs and nods. 

“Good idea. I’ll leave you be, then.” Kibum stands up, tucks his leather gloves into a pocket of his jacket, and walks out of the room. Jongin looks around self-consciously, but all the other skaters are deeply engrossed in their own warm ups. Nobody is looking at him at all. Cautiously, Jongin unrolls a yoga mat and lies down on it, then closes his eyes. 

~

_ “Ready?” Taemin asks, half-slumped against Jongin’s shoulder after their strenuous workout that afternoon.  _

_ “Yeah.” Jongin nods, then Taemin’s warmth dissipates from his side as the elder skater situates himself to sit opposite of Jongin.  _

_ “Make yourself comfortable,” Taemin instructs. “You can lie down if you want.” Jongin does, feeling rather self-conscious despite Taemin’s soothing, patient voice.  _

_ “Close your eyes,” Taemin murmurs, and Jongin’s eyelids flutter shut. The soft drone of Taemin’s voice is the only thing that guides him through the darkness. “Starting from the top of your body, just relax every muscle that you can, even the little ones. Your forehead, your lips, your eyelids.” Jongin obeys, letting his lips part slightly, releasing strain in features that he wasn’t even aware were tensed. “Keep relaxing through your entire body,” Taemin instructs. “Down through your neck, shoulders, and fingertips. And as you do so, start taking deeper, slower breaths. Inhale, then exhale. Nice and easy.” Jongin loosens up as he focuses on the simple tasks that Taemin puts out. He’s no longer worried about what he looks like, and the small distractions--an itch on his nose, sweat drying on his back, footsteps above him--everything fades away as he finds his headspace. “Now,” Taemin resumes his soothing narration once Jongin’s chest begins to rise and fall steadily. “Think about all the time and hard work that you have put into your training.” Lost in a haze of serenity, Jongin’s thoughts form like bubbles; fragile spheres of consciousness that come and go through his mind. He sees himself, waking up before the sun every morning, and going home after it sets. He knows, all too acutely, the feeling of numb fingertips and toes, sore muscles, and tender, swollen ankles from one too many cheated landings. Jongin exhales shakily as he remembers swallowing tears of doubt and uncertainty and skating through the terrifying feeling of being unable to breathe. Harsh, hurtful, horrible feelings that have clouded his thoughts in past and present claw their way to the forefront of his mind.  _

_ “You have gone through so much to be right here,” Taemin murmurs. His words create a current in Jongin’s mind, carrying his thoughts in one direction instead of random memories and feelings popping up in the darkness. “Remember the reason why you work so hard?” All the previously conjured thoughts that Jongin had slowly flow out of his mind to be replaced by a feeling so intangible, so ephemeral, that Jongin feels the cavity in his chest ache because of it. Yes; sometimes skating is dark, and cold, and lonely. But it is also euphoria so powerful it makes him tremble. It is an international team jacket embroidered with his name. It is the obnoxious clink of medals in a crowded restaurant, non-stop laughter in sweaty locker rooms, and boys with small, warm hands that skate like liquid fire. _

_ “Relax,” Taemin whispers, because Jongin has tensed up unknowingly as he sorts through this inexhaustible variety of memories. “These are things that are important. I want you to remember this when you go out and compete next week. Let it be your guide.” Jongin does. On a tired Thursday night, surrounded by sweat and steel, laying on hard rubber mats, Jongin clutches tightly onto everything that he has accomplished; acknowledges everything he has yet to become. He knows, instinctually, without a shred of doubt in his body, that he is exactly where he needs to be, that he is doing the right thing, and that he will be okay. Jongin feels like he’s floating on energy--whatever nerves had started to creep into his system have faded away to be replaced by a small, steady flame in his heart. The warmth and passion of that fire grows larger and larger until it consumes his veins and courses through his limbs; trust, power, confidence.  _

_ “Slowly start bringing life back into your body,” Taemin speaks once more. “Wiggle your fingers, your toes. Shake yourself out. Take a few more deep breaths. And whenever you’re ready.” Taemin’s voice drops low. “Open your eyes, and show the world what you’re made of.”  _

_ ~ _

“Go,” Kibum whispers in Jongin’s ear, and squeezes his hand. 

“Skating on behalf of the Republic of South Korea.” Jongin pushes away from his coach and the boards when the announcer’s voice fills the stadium.  “Please welcome Jongin Kim.” He presents himself, then shakes his legs out as he slowly circles closer and closer to his starting position. Strangely enough, his mind is blank. He doesn’t focus on any tangible thought as he settles into his pose, and when the music starts, Jongin only registers it subconsciously. The first transition is a blur, and before Jongin knows it, he’s landed his Triple Lutz flawlessly. For a brief moment, Jongin is elated, but a strange nuance of the music is what draws Jongin out of his dreamlike state as he’s approaching his Triple Axel. His timing is off. He’s ahead of the music… oh fuck _.  _ It hits him like a jolt of electricity that makes him pop his Triple to a Double and stumble on the landing--that first jumping pass was NOT choreographed as a single element. That was his Triple-Triple combination, and he completely left out the Triple Toe. Shit. He fucked up. How did he forget to do a whole combination? Jongin holds his first spin for a couple seconds longer than he usually would to adjust his timing, mind whirling with the implications of his mistake. He needs to… he needs to rearrange, to put that combination somewhere else.  _ Which jump? Which jump? You fucking idiot. Where are you gonna put that Toe now?  _ There’s no time to panic, but Jongin panics. His mind is racing ahead of his movements; if it weren’t for muscle memory, he would have completely lost track of his choreography by now. Jongin lands his Triple Loop shakily, far too shaky to have added another jump to the end of it. Besides, a Lutz-Toe turned Loop-Toe wouldn’t be worth the lost points anyway. Grimly, Jongin figures it out just as he pulls into his Flying Sit Spin. He’s going to have to do it with his second Triple Lutz, which happens to be 1. in the second half of his program, and 2. after he’s totally exhausted from his three-jump sequence.  _ Great,  _ Jongin’s brain thinks sardonically.  _ Fantastic.  _ Speak of the devil; Jongin is already breathing hard from having to use extra brainpower to reorganize his program, and his jump sequence is the next element. He’s already half-way through the program? When did that happen? Jongin’s limbs are starting to feel like lead; stiffening up because of the lack of oxygen. Kibum’s instruction filters in on top of everything else that Jongin is thinking.  _ Don’t fight it. Stay relaxed, keep your movements compact. No need to kill yourself if your body can’t take it.  _ It feels like there’s an entire war raging inside his head. His wild, loose train of thought just never stops overthinking.  _ Jongin!  _ He scolds himself when he pops the second Triple Flip in his Flip-Euler-Flip combination into a Double Flip.  _ Just because you can’t fucking breathe does not mean you start popping!  _

_ But I can’t breathe.  _

_ That’s on you. Hey look, your Lutz-Toe is up next. Good luck.  _

Despite his own panicked, scattered monologuing in the midst of his performance, something small and precious in Jongin’s heart unlodges itself and nudges his willpower as his arms sweep around himself in time with the music. He remembers at least four people, all near and dear to his heart, telling him how proud they were of his messy Lutz-Toe in the short program. And Jongin suddenly recognizes that no matter how shitty the rest of his program might happen to be, this is the one combination that he has to nail. This will be his small victory for this competition--the fact that he lands this impromptu combination that was only decided on less than a minute ago in the middle of a spin. Jongin pulls speed from around the corner, and forces his mind to shut up and close down. He knows how to do this. He’s practiced it a million times before. Sure, he’s tired and his lungs are on fire, but this is nothing new. Jongin picks into the ice to jump. He snaps his arms in and locks his position. Land the first jump, reach behind with the left foot, and tap into the ice again. Kibum slams the boards with approval as Jongin flies out of a drop-dead gorgeous Triple Lutz-Triple Toe in the second half of his program, burning lungs and all. 

“GOOD BOY!” His coach’s voice is discernible even through the clapping of the audience, and Jongin is smiling, genuinely interacting with the judges and spectators as he flies through his step sequence and into a Double Axel. His last combination--Triple Salchow-Double Loop--is a little worse for wear, given that he genuinely does not have any endurance left, but when Jongin finally finishes his last spin and hits that final pose on time, he covers his mouth with both hands and laughs breathlessly to himself. To Shun Sato, that might have been a disastrous performance. But to Kim Jongin, it was a spark of confidence, one that leaves him with sparkling eyes and a big smile. It is the knowledge that he is capable of fighting tooth and nail to accomplish what he wanted to do, even if things didn’t go quite as planned. Jongin didn’t crumble under pressure. He didn’t fall. And when Jongin steps off the ice and into Kibum’s arms, the fierce look of pride in Kibum’s eyes tells Jongin everything he needs to know. 

“Good boy. Good job.” Kibum rubs Jongin’s back proudly. “That’s the fight I want to see.” 

“I… forgot… the fucking… jump…” Jongin speaks in between heavy gasps of breath, making his way to the kiss and cry bench with Kibum. 

“But you still got it done,” Kibum tells him, giving him a small fist bump. “Small triumphs, Nini. I am very proud of you today.” 

“Yeah.” Jongin dabs at his forehead. 

“The one thing you shouldn’t have done was let your Triple Axel go like that.” Kibum ruffles Jongin’s hair affectionately. “You don’t have to panic that extensively. You know your program like the back of your hand, always remember that.” 

“I know,” Jongin laments. “I didn’t do a Triple Axel in the free skate or short.” It’s disappointing because Jongin has one in his arsenal, but continues to stumble on it under pressure. As a prospective Senior skater, it’s imperative that Jongin shows the Federation that he is capable of producing Quad-like jumps in international competitions--especially if he already has two Quad jumps. On a micro-level, not having landed a Triple Axel also means that it’s pretty much guaranteed that he won’t break 120 points in the free skate here at Lake Placid, which he would need to have a shot at placing among the top six or seven for final placements. 

“You have JGP Poland,” Kibum reassures him. “We’ll work on consistency when we go back home.” 

“The scores for Jongin Kim, please.” Jongin clasps both hands against his chest nervously.  “He has scored 115.72 points in the free skate--”

“Urgh.” Kibum’s mouth twitches to the side in dissatisfaction, and Jongin glances at him questioningly. “So low.” 

“His total segment score is 176.86. He is currently in second place.”

CURRENT STANDINGS

1 |  Matyas BELOHRADSKY | 184.01  
---|---|---  
2 |  Jongin KIM | 176.86  
3 |  Beres CLEMENTS | 176.77  
4 |  Matvei VETLUGIN | 176.09  
5 |  Fang-Yi LIN | 148.46  
  
www.isu.org

“Assuming the top six from the short program all beat you, you’ll probably end up somewhere around eighth,” Kibum considers.

“Top 10,” Jongin murmurs.

“That’s good,” Kibum says as he stands up and steps down from the kiss-and-cry; Jongin follows close behind him. “That’s exactly where we projected you to be at the start of this season, right?” Jongin nods in agreement. “You’re right on track, Nini.” Kibum turns around when they reach the backstage area and pulls Jongin into a warm, comforting hug. “I am so proud of you,” Kibum murmurs. “You came here and you accomplished almost everything that you needed to.” 

“Thank you, coachnim.” Jongin closes his eyes and smiles into Kibum’s jacket. 

“We’re gonna go home, and we’re going to keep working towards your goals.” 

“Okay.” Jongin takes a deep breath, then releases it slowly. “Let’s do it.” 

Bonus time! More bios of the remaining Junior skaters that are most story relevant. You'll meet the Junior skaters from Newclear as well as canon Shun Sato. We are revealing some information in the bios as well that are not necessarily mentioned in the chapters already (for example you were able to learn something about Kibum from last chapter's bios).

Small reminder that the ISU has dates in the format of DD.MM.YYYY and we kept that for our version of the ISU bios. We'll start this week with Shun Sato. You can find his official ISU bio here: <http://www.isuresults.com/bios/isufs00054884.htm>. In the fic we are only a little over half-way into 2019, so you will see events in his official bio that are not listed in our back-dated bio yet.

Some of the tables in the bios are too wide for a mobile screen, so you'll have to scroll sideways if you are reading on mobile to see their full (inter)national competition history.

_Junior Men_

Shun SATO

JPN

Date of birth | 06.02.2004 (15)  
---|---  
Place of birth | Sendai  
Height | 160 cm  
Home town | Saitama  
Profession | High school student  
Hobbies | movies, games  
Start skating / current Club |  **2009** / **Saitamasakae High School** |   
Internet / Social Media contact |   
  
Coach | Tadao Kusaka, Keiko Asano  
---|---  
Choreographer | Benoît Richaud  
Former Coach | Masahiro Kawagoe, Misao Sato  
Practice off season |  **16** h/week **Saitama/JPN**  
Practice competitive season |  **16** h/week **Saitama/JPN**  
  
Music Short Program as of season 2019/2020  
**Arrivée des Camionneurs by Michel Legrand**

Music Free Skating / Free Dance as of season 2019/2020  
**A Time For Us (from “Romeo and Juliet”) by Nino Rota, performed by Barratt Waugh**

Personal Best Total Score  
---  
222.30 | 25.11.2018 | Japan Junior Championships 2018  
Personal Best Score Short Program  
71.17 | 23.02.2019 | International Challenge Cup 2019  
Personal Best Score Free Skate  
156.29 | 05.11.2018 | Japan Junior Championships 2018  
  
| 12 / 13 | 13 / 14 | 14 / 15 | 15 / 16 | 16 / 17 | 17 / 18 | 18 / 19 | 19 / 20  
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---  
Olympic Games  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |   
World Championship  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |   
European Championship  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |   
Four Continents  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |   
World Juniors  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |   
National Championship  |  |  |  | 15.J | 15.J | 16.S, 6.J | 12.S, 2.J |   
  
S=Senior; J=Junior; N=Novice

International Competition | Year | Place  
---|---|---  
Bavarian Open 2018, Oberstdorf | 2018 | 2.J  
Challenge Cup 2019, Den Haag | 2019 | 1.J  
  
[Author note: Sato has not submitted a bio text for himself, so we will leave it blank as well.]

_Junior Men_

Yuta NAKAMOTO

JPN

Date of birth | 26.10.2002 (16)  
---|---  
Place of birth | Osaka  
Height | 176 cm  
Home town | Osaka  
Profession | Student  
Hobbies | Soccer  
Start skating / current Club |  **2007** / **Newclear Figure Skating Club** |   
Internet / Social Media contact | [yuu_taa_1026 on Instagram](https://www.instagram.com/yuu_taa_1026/)  
  
Coach | Woohyun Nam  
---|---  
Choreographer | Jeffrey Buttle  
Former Coach | Shoichiro Tsuzuki  
Practice off season |  **14** h/week **Daegu/SK**  
Practice competitive season |  **20** h/week **Daegu/SK**  
  
Music Short Program as of season 2019/2020  
**Sweet Remembrance of You by William Joseph**

Music Free Skating / Free Dance as of season 2019/2020  
**Truman Show (soundtrack) by Philipp Glass and Burkhard Dalkowitz**

Personal Best Total Score  
---  
219.22 | 07.12.2018 | Junior Grand Prix Final 2018  
Personal Best Score Short Program  
78.34 | 24.08.2018 | JGP Slovakia 2018  
Personal Best Score Free Skate  
138.88 | 07.03.2019 | World Junior Figure Skating Championships 2019  
  
| 12 / 13 | 13 / 14 | 14 / 15 | 15 / 16 | 16 / 17 | 17 / 18 | 18 / 19 | 19 / 20  
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---  
Olympic Games  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |   
World Championship  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |   
European Championship  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |   
Four Continents  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |   
World Juniors  |  |  |  |  |  |  | 3 |   
National Championship  |  |  |  |  | 6.N | 2.N | 1.J |   
  
S=Senior; J=Junior; N=Novice

International Competition | Year | Place  
---|---|---  
ISU JGP Slovakia 2018, Bratislava | 2018 | 2.J  
ISU JGP Canada 2018, Richmond | 2018 | 2.J  
ISU Junior Grand Prix of Figure Skating Final 2018/2019, Vancouver | 2018 | 5.J  
Bavarian Open 2019, Oberstdorf | 2019 | 2.J  
  
Nakamoto began skating when he was 5 and also played soccer. When he was 12, he quit soccer and moved to Korea to begin training with Coach Nam Woohyun, who is a 3-time National Medalist. Nakamoto looks up to Yuzuru Hanyu and Daisuke Takahashi.

_Junior Men_

Dongyoung KIM

KOR

Date of birth | 01.02.2003 (16)  
---|---  
Place of birth | Gyeonggi  
Height | 178 cm  
Home town | Gyeonggi  
Profession | Student  
Hobbies | Singing  
Start skating / current Club |  **2007** / **Newclear Figure Skating Club** |   
Internet / Social Media contact | [do0_nct on Instagram](https://www.instagram.com/do0_nct/)  
  
Coach | Woohyun Nam  
---|---  
Choreographer | Jeffrey Buttle  
Former Coach | N/A  
Practice off season |  **14** h/week **Daegu/SK**  
Practice competitive season |  **20** h/week **Daegu/SK**  
  
Music Short Program as of season 2019/2020  
**Comptine d'un autre été by Yann Tiersen**

Music Free Skating / Free Dance as of season 2019/2020  
**Breathe Me by Sia (male cover)**

Personal Best Total Score  
---  
177.56 | 05.07.2019 | Cherry Blossom Open 2019  
Personal Best Score Short Program  
60.11 | 04.07.2019 | Cherry Blossom Open 2019  
Personal Best Score Free Skate  
117.45 | 05.07.2019 | Cherry Blossom Open 2019  
  
| 12 / 13 | 13 / 14 | 14 / 15 | 15 / 16 | 16 / 17 | 17 / 18 | 18 / 19 | 19 / 20  
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---  
Olympic Games  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |   
World Championship  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |   
European Championship  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |   
Four Continents  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |   
World Juniors  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |   
National Championship  |  |  |  |  |  | 12.N | 5.J |   
  
S=Senior; J=Junior; N=Novice

Kim began skating when he went to the rink for a birthday party when he was young. Aside from skating, he enjoys singing and playing the flute and bass. He says that his strength is musicality. Kim currently trains with Coach Nam Woohyun, who is a 3-time National Medalist and 1993 World Bronze Medalist.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Back and better than ever :3 congratulations to Nini for skating at his first JGP! (and for kolo :3)  
>  Bonus anecdote from your (favorite) authors ;)  
>  me: *slowly taking my skates off after practice bc my fingers are numb*  
>  Aranee: "You should go check out Taemin's teaser pictures for Idea, I think you'll like them."  
>  my 200 iq mind: "IS HE SHIRTLESS"  
>  (no but seriously, please go listen to Idea. as noted by Aranee 23840198 times in the process of creating this chapter, "IDEA IS SUCH A GOOD SONG.")  
>  I love you all and will be back soon ;)
> 
> He didn't fall \o/! Thank you for all the good luck wishes in the comments last time, it helped~
> 
> I might have been listening to Never Gonna Dance Again Act 2 on loop ever since it came out, but I'm sure I didn't say Idea is such a good song 23840198 times, it must have been at least 23840199 times, twice alone while writing this author's note and talking to justafei at the same time XD. Give Taemin's release some love and a view if you can spare the time~ Also good look to Jongin going on his first solo adventure!
> 
> Out of curiousity: Are you reading the bios? Do you think the information adds value or is it mostly just too much? We are putting attention and detail to all the facts and you'll see how much and where all our skaters train and get to know a number of canon skaters over time as well =).
> 
> Thank you for all your love, we are looking forward to your comments, and see you soon~ <3


	23. Chapter 21

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Underlined  dialogue is English.  
>  _Italic_ dialogue is Mandarin Chinese.

Arms wrapped around his waist. Heavy breathing in his ear. A quiet, familiar giggle. Jongin stops in his tracks and glances behind himself, then promptly beams and lets go of his suitcase to return the hug. 

“Look who’s back.” Taemin ruffles Jongin’s hair a couple of times mischievously. “How was your first JGP?” 

“Tiring,” Jongin answers, feeling the elder’s fast heartbeat through his own chest. He must have finished his warm-up lap around the rink and snuck in behind Jongin. “Lots of fun. Really rewarding.” 

“You did great, Nini.” Taemin releases him and walks away to finish the rest of his warm-up. Affection time over. Back to training. Jongin pouts to himself as he collects his suitcase and walks towards the locker room, but it’s more to hide the idiotic smile spreading across his face than out of disappointment. 

“Yahhh.” Minho claps his hands loudly and holds out his arms when Jongin pushes the door of the locker room open to the familiar sight of his teammates. “Here he is, the Lutz-Toe king.” 

“Clearly, hyung must not have seen my short program,” Jongin mutters under his breath as Minho crushes his ribs. 

“Hyung watched everything,” Jinki vouches for Minho, greeting Jongin with a gentler hug once Minho lets go. “Well done, Nini. You should be proud of yourself.” 

“I am.” Jongin nods and bends down to unzip his suitcase. “I want to do even better at JGP Poland, though. And that’s, what, two days after Chinese Nationals?” 

“Things are picking up, that’s for sure. Chinese Nationals are in two weeks, so Yixing’s frantic. Plus we have Nebelhorn Trophy a month later, and then it’ll be Grand Prix event after Grand Prix event,” Jinki says, but he sounds unconcerned. 

“Hi.” The door opens and Yixing walks in with his duffel bag, a boyfriend, and a cat carrier. Jongin raises a hand in greeting. Baekhyun waves back. 

“I meant your boyfriend, not you,” Jongin tells Baekhyun. 

“Good to see you, too,” Baekhyun plants his hands on his hips and tilts his head in mock hurt. Jongin claps him on the back. Yixing wraps his arms around both of them, ruffling Jongin’s hair and dropping a kiss in Baekhyun’s before jetting off to warm-up. 

“Wait, wait, I need to run as well.” Jongin breaks away and takes off after Yixing. Both of them pass Jonghyun, small in a massive winter coat and holding a cup of coffee. Jongin gets a high-five and words of praise as he jogs by. 

Falling back into the mildly chaotic routine of training is easy for Jongin. Peak competition season rushes upon all of them like a massive tsunami wave that nobody is prepared for, with the exception of Jinki, who is calmer than everyone. 

“It’s just another competition season,” he sighs wisely, watching Sehun gently nudge Luobo out of the way so he can tie his skates. Lulu butts her head against Taemin’s hip on the bench and mews pitifully until the youngest Senior skater gives her a few pats. Jonghyun collects her as Taemin stands up to shake out his legs. 

“Looks like we have our rink pets,” he chuckles. 

“Okay. I--uh, leave home, I can’t today,” Yixing sighs. “Thank you for take care of them.” 

“No problem. I bet Minseok would love them.” Jonghyun deposits both cats in the blanket-lined carrier to take them to the bleachers while he spectates practice. “Baekhyun, wanna come with me?” 

“Absolutely; teach me everything, hyung.” Baekhyun stands up and waves to Yixing. “I’m only going to watch you,” he promises. Yixing smiles silently, shoulders tense because of the pressure of his upcoming Nationals, which are scheduled even before the Grand Prix Series starts. Having missed the chance to go to the World Championships last year, Yixing is absolutely hell bent on winning this year so that he will earn China’s one and only spot at Worlds. 

“So happy to see all your bright, smiling faces again,” Kibum greets them when the skaters glide onto the ice in various levels of stress. “Let’s see where we’re at for the season.” He is strict all throughout practice, along with Minseok and Kyungsoo. All aspects of everyone’s programs must be polished and well-executed at this point. Expectations are always high, but the bar is constantly being raised. 

“You can either keep up or get off.” Kyungsoo turns away from Sehun, who is panting after his free skate. “Last three jumping passes again, with the music.” The youngest turns away without complaints. Over on the other side, Yixing is furiously drilling his Quad Flip-Triple Toe combination. Taemin whizzes by the bleachers, Jonghyun’s eyes following his steps and movements carefully as he throws himself into a Quad Lutz-Triple Loop. 

“Underrotated Loop.” Jonghyun’s lips twist to the side. 

“What does that mean?” Baekhyun strokes a purring Lulu over her ears. 

“His skate hit the ice when there was still a quarter rotation left to go. So you could say it was only a Double-And-Three-Quarters Loop when it should be a Triple Loop.” The radio host watches as Taemin circles around to check the mark left in the ice by his blade, and sure enough, he shakes his head in disapproval. “Not enough height,” Jonghyun murmurs. 

“Uh…” Baekhyun watches Taemin almost clear the boards with his next attempt. “That… looks pretty high to me.” 

“No.” Jonghyun shakes his head even before Taemin reaches back to tap the ice with his toe pick. “He’ll pop it.” Sure enough, Taemin flies out of rotation and skids to a stop in frustration. “Brat,” Jonghyun mutters under his breath when Taemin ignores Kibum’s call and circles to try for the fourth time. Baekhyun’s attention drifts back to Yixing, who is skating through parts of his program. The gamer flinches as his boyfriend narrowly avoids crashing into Minho, calling out an apology that goes unanswered. 

“This… looks… messy,” Baekhyun says cautiously. The only person who looks remotely calm is Jinki, who avoids Jongin and executes a pretty Quad Loop before twirling out of it. “They’re competing in a few weeks?” 

“This is a very normal practice,” Jonghyun tells him. 

“I wouldn’t know. I’ve only sat in on a few minutes of practice before because of my hectic schedule. Never a whole two and a half hour session,” Baekhyun explains. “And I’ve only ever seen Yixing skate his… his, uh, routine before.” 

“This is the training process of what you, the judges, and the audience sees.” Jonghyun gestures furiously to Taemin when the younger happens to look towards the bleachers, then points firmly at Kibum.  _ Use your arms, stop throwing your upper body, listen to Kibum.  _

_ I have no height :(.  _

_ I said use your arms! _

“What was I saying?” Jonghyun asks distractedly. “Oh, right. A lot of messy goes into creating something pretty.” 

“I know, but…” Baekhyun winces as Sehun crashes into the boards on a hard fall. “It hardly looks like…” 

“Progress? Watch them when they start running their programs,” Jonghyun tells him. “In the beginning, they used to fall and stumble and run out of stamina. All these individual pieces make the practice look choppy, but once they start combining things, you’ll see how the jump patterns fuse together. Oh, there you go.” Jonghyun points to Jongin, who is settled into his free skate starting position. Baekhyun watches his graceful movements, the emotions portrayed across his face, his messy crashes turned into easy landings. “That’s the muscle memory that really matters. Making the program perfect. Seems like Minseok still isn’t impressed though,” Jonghyun chuckles, eyeing the young choreographer who taps his foot impatiently against the ice whenever something doesn’t go right. 

“It looks good to me,” Baekhyun sighs, ruffling his hair. “I can’t tell.” 

“I couldn’t either, at first. It took a lot of watching and research.” Jonghyun flashes a thumbs up to Taemin when he finally lands a satisfactory combination.  _ MUCH better.  _

“Hyung, what’s Yixing doing?” Baekhyun inquires, watching Kyungsoo hand a balloon-shaped toy to his boyfriend, who bends down to tuck it under his joggers on the outside of his right ankle, just above the top of his skate boot. 

“Dog squeaker?” Jonghyun guesses. 

“A--what,” Baekhyun says faintly. 

“Just listen.” Both of them watch as Yixing circles around the rink for a Triple Axel. A faint ‘squeak’ can be heard from where they’re sitting when Yixing snaps into his tight rotation position. “They use a dog squeaker to tell if their legs are together in the air. When they cross their feet at the ankles, they want to hear a squeak.” 

“Oh, shit!” Baekhyun’s jaw drops. “That’s so smart!” 

“Isn’t it?” Jonghyun agrees. 

“Hyung.” Jongin catches up to Jinki, who is slowly circling the rink after his short program. “I think I’m losing it.” 

“Hmm?” Jinki turns to Jongin, who nods in the direction of Taemin, strapped into the jump assist harness, with Kyungsoo trailing after him, the rod the harness is dangling from in his hands. 

“I could swear I saw a Quad Axel, hyung,” Jongin says quietly. “I think I can’t count rotations correctly.” 

“Quad--” Jinki squints at Taemin, who steps forward, snaps into a blur of rotation, and then promptly crashes onto the ice, though it would’ve been ten times worse if Kyungsoo hadn’t been there to hold him up a little. “Wait.” 

“One, two, three, four and a half.” Jongin counts on his fingers. “Am I seeing things, hyung? That was four and a half revolutions, right?” 

“What the fuck is that kid doing?” Minho stops by the boards for a drink of water. “Is that Quad Axel?” 

“Quad Axel?” Yixing echoes, sending up a spray of snow after his short program run through. “Is it?” 

“I am retiring,” Sehun announces as they all watch another failed, but valiant attempt. “Send Kibum my regards.” 

“Don’t steal my spotlight.” Jinki frowns. 

“OI!” Kibum’s voice snaps them all to attention. “Does this look like a conference room? Get to work!” Taemin’s little fanbase scatters in different directions.

“That’s a Quad Axel,” Jinki states to Kibum, starting a conversation easily. 

“It wasn’t my idea, if you’re going to start pointing fingers.” Kibum sighs. 

“But he had talked to you about it?” 

“Of course he didn’t talk to me.” Kibum’s wry smile is equal parts affectionate and exhausted. “According to Kyungsoo, the brat roped him and Minseok into helping him with it while I was away at JGP.” 

“And…” Jinki watches as Taemin crashes on another attempt; Jonghyun records the jump to analyze later. “You… you’re letting him try to land it? Nobody’s landed it. Not Chen, not Hanyu, nobody.” 

“I--” Kibum throws his hands in the air. “What am I supposed to do? Tell him to stop? Does it look like he listens to me?” 

“Fair enough,” Jinki concedes, then sighs heavily. “This is why I’m retiring after this season.” 

“So.” Jongin sits down next to Taemin after practice in the locker room and fixes him with a curious look. 

“So,” Taemin agrees with messy bangs and sparkling, mischievous eyes. “How was practice?” 

“Good, but jet lag is a real bitch. Don’t change the subject,” Jongin pouts. 

“We were talking about something?” 

“Taemin-ah.” 

“Nini.” Taemin beams. 

“Quad Axel?” Jongin insists. 

“Ah, that.” Taemin bends down to untie his skates. “What do you think?” 

“About… your Quad Axel?” 

“I think it’s a good jump to have in the arsenal,” Taemin murmurs. “Kind of… unexpected. Everyone will be eager to see it, I’m sure.” 

“That’s an understatement,” Jongin whispers. “Nobody’s ever landed it, Taemin-ah. Or even attempted it.” 

“Landed it  _ yet _ ,” Taemin corrects. “Attempted it  _ in competition.”  _

“There are people struggling with regular Quads, Taemin,” Jongin grumbles. “Leave some for the rest of us.” 

“I would hardly consider landing a Quad Flip with a 50% success rate ‘struggling’,” Taemin shrugs. “Besides, this is obviously what the sport is slowly turning to. Quad Axels, quintuple attempts, the like. Kyungsoo says so. I see it. Hanyu sees it, too; I know he does. Chen does. Even some good Juniors.” 

“I… think I’m just going to retire before I have to worry about it,” Jongin says weakly, mostly because he has nothing else to say. 

“You probably won’t.” Taemin turns to him with a small smile, one loaded with ideas and thoughts that Jongin can’t even begin to conceptualize. While everyone else is worrying about the upcoming competition season, Jongin realizes, Taemin is already preparing for the ones that are two, three, and four years from now. “You’re already working towards it, whether you know it or not.” 

“You two want to tell me about that Quad Axel?” are the first words out of Kibum’s mouth when the three coaches get situated in an empty locker room. 

“He can land it.” Kyungsoo’s quiet voice echoes around the space. 

“Has it been done yet?” Minseok inquires. 

“It’s been landed on a jump assist harness. There’s multiple accounts of it,” Kyungsoo informs both of them. 

“I’m not going to argue. If he wants to do Quad Axel, let him try Quad Axel.” Kibum rummages around in his bag for his planner. “But I’m worried about him getting injured during the competition season.” 

“We’ll just treat it like Jongin’s Quad Flip last year. Twice a week, harness only until the big competitions are done. He won’t object to that,” Kyungsoo shrugs. Kibum stares at him for a while, then nods. 

“I suppose. But speaking of big competitions.”

“Chinese Nationals are September 14th-16th, and JGP Poland is two days after,” Minseok recites off the top of his head. 

“Exactly. Which means I really can’t afford to be at both of them.” Kibum winces. “That’s a very messy schedule.” 

“Right, we won’t make you do that…” Minseok taps his chin with a pen. “We should also consider Nebelhorn Trophy in our plans. That’s September 25th, four days after JGP Poland ends.” 

“I can make that one if I go with Yixing, but not if I go with Jongin.” 

“Does Yixing need a coach?” Kyungsoo inquires. “He is experienced enough to handle a domestic competition on his own.” 

“I think it would be good to have someone there.” Kibum raises an eyebrow. “That’s his ticket to Worlds. Perhaps leaving our Chinese skater to be on his own at Nationals would… give off the wrong impression.” Kyungsoo nods immediately in agreement. “I know that’s not what you meant,” Kibum clarifies. “But yeah. Someone needs to go.” 

“I could go with him,” Minseok suggests. “Then Ksoo can go with Jongin, and Kibum at Nebelhorn.” 

“I could take Jongin as well,” Kibum points out. “He needs the support. It’s a big event for him.” 

“I can do it,” Kyungsoo says. 

“He’s kinda scared of you, you know that?” Minseok teases. Kyungsoo blinks. 

“Why?” 

“You’re pretty terrifying when you’re mad,” Kibum smirks. 

“So are you.” Kyungsoo stares back at him. 

“But I also buy them cupcakes. What does that say--” 

“Quit it, we all know they like me the best.” Minseok’s smile is angelic. 

“Then YOU go with Jongin, and Kyungsoo can go with Yixing,” Kibum rolls his eyes. 

“But I have choreographers I want to talk to in Jilin.” Minseok pouts. 

“If I give Nini to you, are you going to be nice to him?” Kibum asks Kyungsoo. “He’s really sensitive to little changes. He needs someone to be gentle, but still firm.” The jump technician sighs irritably. 

“You’re extra strict during practice, too, aren’t you?” 

“Okay. Whatever.” Kibum shrugs. “So Minseok at CNats, Ksoo at Poland, and I’ll go to Nebelhorn. Excellent. It’s a free trip to Europe. They have excellent fashion taste in Europe.” 

“Yeah, yeah.” Minseok chuckles. “Okay, next?” 

“Next… press conferences for Seniors.” 

“Ohhhh.” Kyungsoo exhales heavily. “Okay.” 

“Yeah.” Kibum flips a page in his planner. “So I’m not particularly worried about Jinki. He’ll probably be asked about retirement and the sort. Nothing he can’t answer.” The other two nod in agreement. “The remaining Seniors we should chat with. Minho will most likely be on at least two or three big podiums this season; Yixing has CNats, and Taemin’s going to have a  _ lot  _ on his plate, so we’ll…” Kibum trails off and rubs his temples wearily. “Have to get through to him somehow… I might enlist Jonghyun for help, otherwise who knows what this kid is going to say.” 

“Hey.” Yixing gives Baekhyun a tired smile when he and Jonghyun walk into the locker room. 

“I have no idea what you did, but I know it was incredible,” Baekhyun gushes, sitting down in the very corner and watching Yixing wipe his blades down. “I always like watching your short program.” 

“Wonder why,” Yixing jokes. He glances down at Lulu, curled up in her blanket in Baekhyun’s arms. “She sleep?” 

“Huh? Oh, yeah. She fell asleep during your free skate. Clearly, she doesn’t appreciate the fine art of skrrt skrrting around the ice.” Baekhyun stays still as Yixing reaches out to tap her pink nose, then strokes Baekhyun’s hair back from his face. Just that simple, caring gesture makes him redden. 

“Where’s Luobo?” 

“Here,” Jonghyun calls, holding the purring feline in his arms while Taemin and Jongin coo over it. 

“Was practice good?” Baekhyun asks. Yixing’s brow furrows. 

“Depends.” 

“How?” 

“Is good. Not good enough.” Yixing runs a hand frustratedly through his hair. “Always feel like… no energy. Tired at end.” 

“It’s a long routine, Xing Xing.” Baekhyun shrugs. “And you didn’t fall during it.” 

“More… there is more.” Yixing bites his lip in frustration. “Not fall is easy.” 

“Damn, don’t flex on me like that, babe.” 

“What is ‘flex’?” 

“Never mind.” Baekhyun’s heart swells with affection. “Just know that you’re the best in my eyes, no matter what the judges say. And I know that you want to win and go to Worlds,” Baekhyun’s voice softens. “I get that. But I really believe you’ll make it happen. You’re so hard on yourself; all that work will pay off. You’re better than you think you are.” 

“You make Worlds,” Yixing murmurs. 

“Huh?” Baekhyun’s thrown off for a moment. “Oh, yeah.” He smiles happily. “LCK Summer Champions, baby.” 

“2-time MVP,” Yixing adds, reaching out to ruffle Baekhyun’s hair proudly. “Kyoong-berry.” 

“You’ll make Worlds, too,” Baekhyun encourages. “We can both make Worlds.” 

“When… yours?” 

“Umm, the tournament runs from late October to mid-November. You?” Baekhyun inquires. 

“Next year. Spring.” Yixing shrugs. “So you… busy then?” 

“Yeah, lots of training coming up, but what’s new.” In his arms, Lulu’s mouth stretches wide in a yawn, and her eyes blink open. “Good  _ afternoon,  _ sleepyhead,” Baekhyun coos. “Did you have a good nap?” 

“Hyung, come take a look at this,” Taemin calls, and Yixing gets up to watch the Quad Axel attempt that Jonghyun had recorded. 

“Ah…” Yixing counts rotations when Jonghyun slows it down. “Cheated?” 

“Yeah,” Minho affirms. “He’s missing a whole three quarters of a rotation. It’s really just an over rotated Triple Axel right now.” 

“See, toe pick hits the ice right… here,” Jonghyun stops the video briefly. “So you still need a lot of rotation.” He and Minho get into a very heated discussion about the physics of completing four and a half rotations while Taemin takes the phone from Jonghyun’s hands to rewind it. Yixing leans over Taemin’s shoulder; Jongin sitting on the other side of the youngest Senior. 

“Ah, I didn’t expect to land it, of course,” Taemin murmurs, brow creased in concentration. “But still…” Yixing reaches out to stop the slow motion while Taemin is still in the air. There’s absolutely no white space in between his legs. His arms are pulled in as tightly as possible. His position is as straight as a stick. 

“Problem,” Yixing murmurs. “No room left for… oh… how you say?” He draws fast circles in the air. 

“I mean, this is about as tight of a position as you’re going to get,” Jongin supplies. “Lots of angular momentum.” 

“Yes, that.” Yixing snaps his fingers. 

“Xing Xing.” A shy head rests against his bicep, searching for attention. Without looking, Yixing drapes his arm around his boyfriend’s shoulder and pulls him in, even as Taemin and Jongin rewind the video again. 

“Kyungsoo’s already giving you quite a bit of height,” Jonghyun leans back towards Taemin. 

“Up and snap.” Minho clicks his tongue. “You gotta pull in way faster than you do for Quads.” 

“It’s only been a week,” Jonghyun shrugs. “Give it time. It’s not your main priority right now, anyway. Not if you’re still underrotating that Lutz-Loop. Besides, you have to study for CSAT. Hurry up and get your skates off.” Taemin gumbles, but hands Jonghyun’s phone back to him. 

“Anyone know why the group workout was cancelled today?” Sehun asks from the corner, texting Junmyeon about getting off early. 

“Kibum said press conference briefings,” Jinki answers without looking up from his phone. 

“You going?” Minho asks him. 

“Probably not.” Jinki’s experienced enough to be able to handle Top 3 press conferences at international competitions without preliminary discussion with Kibum beforehand. “Taemin and Yixing’s presence is mandatory, and Kibum said you can go if… you expect to… win something this season.” 

“What the hell is that supposed to mean?” Minho rolls his eyes. “Of course I’m winning shit this year.” 

“Better go, then.” Jinki chuckles. 

“I almost wish we had workouts,” Jongin sighs. “I don’t want to study… ” 

“Same,” Sehun deadpans, “Junmyeon’s always on my ass about it.” 

“He should be,” Jonghyun says matter-of-factly. 

“At least you’re only studying for midterms.” Jongin raises an eyebrow. “The College Scholastic Ability Test is literally the most important test in our academic career. Ughhh, I’m stressed.” 

“It’s even harder on you two,” Jonghyun points to Taemin, then Jongin, “because you’re both reaching crucial points in your skating careers as well. I know it’s rough, but you need to keep studying.” 

“Ah, I got it, I know,” Taemin whines. 

“Then hurry up, young man, and you can get some more studying done before your press conference briefing.” 

“Xing,” Baekhyun murmurs as the locker room empties out. Yixing’s hand stays wrapped around his shoulders. 

“Mmmm.” His boyfriend still looks extremely preoccupied with thoughts about his competition season. 

“You look so stressed.” Baekhyun’s brows furrow with worry. 

“I am okay.” Yixing waves it off. “Competition hard.” His eyes soften when he turns to Baekhyun. “Baobei, do not be sad.” 

“I’m… not sad,” Baekhyun murmurs. 

“Then what?” Yixing chuckles at his boyfriend’s droopy puppy dog eyes. 

“Trying to work up the courage to kiss you, you hot perfectionist,” Baekhyun mutters under his breath. 

“Huh?” 

“Kiss,” Baekhyun whispers. 

“如果想吻我，那就做，” Yixing chuckles.  _ If you want to kiss me, then just do it.  _

“Wha…?” Fuck being romantically incompetent. Baekhyun’s cheeks flush with color. “I don’t know…” 

“Use mouth,” Yixing suggests, then he leans in. Baekhyun shuffles closer to him on the bench and shyly wraps his arms around Yixing’s waist, trying to convey his concern and support. Yixing’s hand comes up to cup his cheek, and his thumb rubs circles against Baekhyun’s prominent cheekbone. 

“Right,” Baekhyun croaks when they pull apart and he can breathe again. “Use mouth. Why didn’t I think of that.” Yixing’s lips pull up at the corners; a tiny, affectionate smile. 

The coffee shop that they decide to meet at is just a few blocks away from the rink, and one that Ki-gang frequents regularly for training discussions. The three coaches sit on one side of the table; Minho, Taemin, and Yixing on the other. 

“Hi.” Yixing bows to his coaches before taking a seat. 

“Hey,” Kibum looks up when the three of them arrive. “Let’s chat, shall we? So.” He slides a piece of paper towards each of them, one that includes potential questions for his students respectively, major talking points they should mention, and a list of things that they should avoid. “Let’s start with you first,” he addresses Minho. “Relatively straightforward. They’ll probably ask about your injury; the recovery process. Goals for the next Olympic Games. You might run into some potentially sticky territory when they ask about Taemin.” 

“There’s nothing tricky about that.” Minho reaches over and ruffles Taemin’s hair. “He’s a great competitor, has a bright future, awesome to be around. We’ll keep it light.” Taemin beams happily. 

“Works. What about a potential, ‘Do you feel threatened by the big little ones that are rising to stardom more quickly than your generation of skaters did?’” Minseok poses as a reporter. 

“I mean, it’s a fast-paced sport, so there’s as much pressure on them to do well as there is for us,” Minho replies evenly. “Of course there’s a tangible difference between what the sport was like just five years ago compared to now, but no matter what ‘generation’ of skaters you come from, you earn your spot on the podium.” 

“Okay, great. And I’m sure your elaboration will be fine,” Kibum murmurs, nodding in approval. “Any other concerns from you?” 

“If they ask me to comment on Jinki’s retirement?” Minho asks. 

“What were you going to say?” Minseok inquires. 

“That it’s his choice. That we’ve been teammates for a long time and I’m sad to see him leave the competition stage, but I’m also really proud of him.” 

“So are you going to retire with him?” 

“Absolutely not.” Minho laughs. 

“Okay, that works; let’s move on.” Kibum nods at Yixing. “Chinese Nationals. Obviously you’ll be able to talk much more openly there, just give us a general idea of what you would say. Minseok?”

“Yeah, so they might ask you something along the lines of, ‘So you’ve been training overseas for three years now, how has that been? Do you feel that it’s more beneficial for you?’” 

“Mmmm…” Yixing blinks a few times, trying to string together words in his head before he says them out loud. “It is good.” Minho bursts into laughter and Taemin giggles. 

“That  _ is  _ the gist of what he would say,” Minho points out. 

“Like…” Yixing huffs in frustration. “I miss home, but… many skaters… like Hanyu?” 

“They do the same thing with training overseas?” Minho prompts, and Yixing nods. 

“Just… want to do good.” 

“Okay. Next, ‘You missed the World Championships last year by less than a point, so you’re vying for a spot this year along with everyone else. Is there something that you think sets you apart from your competitors; after all, there is only one spot, and placing first doesn’t necessarily guarantee that position.”

“Just want to do good,” Yixing says helplessly. “We all do.” 

“Do you have an answer for that in Chinese?” Kyungsoo asks, and Yixing nods emphatically. “Okay, I think it’s fine.” 

“Then Taemin.” Kibum turns towards the youngest Senior, and closes his eyes briefly. “You’re in for a ride, honey.” 

“I did conferences last year,” Taemin says. 

“That’s not… they always go easy during your Senior debut.” Minseok’s mouth twists to the side. 

“The point,” Kyungsoo interjects, “is that since the season started at Cherry Blossom, we’ve kept all of you mostly under wraps, away from the press so we can just focus on training. Everything that you’ve prepared--costume, program, technique--is so you can make the biggest splash possible at Nebelhorn Trophy, but you need to understand the amount of attention that comes with that.” 

“Give him questions.” Kibum twirls a pen. 

“‘What would you say to Hanyu about placing above him at Worlds, despite last year being your first one in Senior?’” 

“I don’t think I have to say anything. Hanyu-sunbaenim has been in the spotlight for way longer than I have. I respect his experience and presence. He knows how the sport works, he knows what it takes to be on the Worlds podium.” Quiet, assured, confident. Minho reaches over and pats Taemin on the back a few times. 

“‘You should know that your competitors are already working on Quad Axel, how about you?’” 

“Men’s figure skating is a fast-paced sport; the harsh reality is that if you can’t keep up, your placements go down. I’m working hard.” 

“So we’re not revealing that you’re working on it?” Minseok interjects. Kibum and Taemin both shake their heads ‘no’. 

“No need to invite media presence here. We’re fine as is. We can post it on our own terms later; especially since it’s not a priority right now,” Kibum asserts. “Next question, please.” 

“‘What do you hope to accomplish this year on the international stage?’” 

“My goal for this year is the Grand Prix Final, and I also hope I can do well at Worlds.” 

“‘Are you worried about burning and crashing, such is the trend for big little skaters?” 

“Coach Kibum and I are focused on long-term success.” Taemin keeps his answers short and sweet, seeing as it is only a briefing. 

“Be prepared for some rude words, too,” Minho adds quietly. “I hate to break it to you, but for a sport that evolves so quickly, fans and the media really hate seeing long-standing favorites getting knocked down. And you just beat Hanyu at Worlds.” Taemin nods. 

“I can practice with Jjong-hyung.” 

“Yes, please,” Kibum agrees automatically. “I’ll send him a ton of questions and he can just interview you.” 

“Okay.” 

“Are there any other concerns?” Kibum asks. “We can reconvene if any surprise questions pop up at any of our upcoming events.” His three skaters all remain silent. Taemin studies his paper with a concentrated expression. “Taeminnie? Anything?” 

“No.” 

“Okay. I have nothing else for you all, then. See you tomorrow, bright and early.” 

Two weeks of training fly by in the blink of an eye. Everyday, Jongin wakes up before the sun, stretches out stiff and sore limbs, and drags himself to the rink to continue working on his program before JGP Poland. It just so happens that two years ago, a young, bright-eyed 16-year old Lee Taemin won a silver medal there and secured himself a spot at JGP Finals, so more than anything, Jongin wants to do well at the same competition that Taemin did. He runs his programs like crazy, spends his workouts trying to catch up to Minho, and complains about being tired with Sehun. 

Through it all, it’s a special feeling to know that he has teammates by his side who are working towards their own goals, and that he has friends who love and support him. If it weren’t for Chanyeol’s cooking and Jongdae’s lighthearted joking, the non stop laughter in locker rooms, and Taemin’s hands wrapped around his cold ones, Jongin thinks that he might not have made it this far. It’s hard to believe that only a year ago, he was sitting quietly in a corner of this very same locker room, looking up in awe whenever Jinki spoke to him kindly, too shy to join in with the conversation. But then again, he was also falling on Triple Loops one year ago, a messy bundle of limbs that didn’t know how to work together to deliver jumps. And here he is, getting ready to compete at JGP Poland with a strong arsenal of Triples and even a few developing Quads for next year. 

“Taemin-ah,” Jongin calls so that the elder looks back and jogs in place to wait for him to catch up while they warm up. “I’m leaving for JGP soon.” 

“I know.” They’re closer than ever, Jongin knows, but Taemin is so headstrong about his training that he tends to dismiss affection these days, especially during practices. After workouts, though, when he rests his head between Jongin’s shoulder blades and wraps his arms around Jongin’s waist from behind, disregarding the sweat covering both of them, Jongin thinks he might have found himself an actual angel. A cuddly, pouty, adorable angel. 

“Do you have any… tips for Poland?” Jongin asks hesitantly, unsure if Taemin wants to talk right now or not. “I mean, since you’ve been there.” 

“Ah!” Taemin nods vigorously. “There’s a little rink a few miles away from the competition one. Instead of booking practices on the competition rink, you should go to that one. It’s cheaper and never crowded. Then you can show up for official practice ice on the competition rink to get a feel for the space. Also, if you haven’t booked the hotel yet, I can send you a link for the one I stayed at. It’s very close to both rinks, and it’s super nice.” 

“Mhm.” Jongin suppresses a small smile. He actually wanted sightseeing spots and restaurants, but how typical of Taemin to only think about the competition.

“The ice surface is smaller than it is here,” Taemin adds. “It can be a little jarring at first. They have very soft ice, if I remember correctly. Nice for holding edges, but make sure you get lots of speed.”

“I see.” They finish their jog, and Jongin holds the door open for Taemin. “Oh, hey, Junmyeon-hyung.” 

“Nini, what’s good? Congrats at JGP USA,” Junmyeon envelops him in a warm hug. “I haven’t seen you in a while.” 

“Likewise; what are you up to?” 

“Surprising Sehunnie as usual.” Junmyeon’s eyes crinkle up in a smile. “Just wanted to drop by and sit in for a practice. Sehun said it’s been rough.” 

“Competition season,” Jongin dismisses. 

“Nini!” Taemin calls. “Could you help record this for me?” 

“Sounds like you’re busy.” Junmyeon waves him away. Jongin takes the phone from Taemin to record his off-ice Quad--no, just a Triple, Jongin can barely tell the difference these days--Axel for him. 

“I forgot. If you go upstairs from the indoor spectator area, there’s an empty deck overlooking the rink that is perfect for warm-up and meditation,” Taemin murmurs as he takes the phone from Jongin. 

“Thank you, Taemin-ah.” 

“Good luck.” Taemin’s arm wraps around Jongin’s waist. “I really liked JGP Poland. You’ll do amazing, too.” 

“I want to make the Top 10 again,” Jongin murmurs. 

“If you skate well, you might place in the Top 5,” Taemin tells him. Jongin laughs disbelievingly, but Taemin’s eyes are honest. “Don’t underestimate yourself.” 

“IF I,” Minho says loudly as he enters the locker room after practice, “HAVE TO HEAR KIBUM CALLING ME A SHRIMP WITH HUNCHBACK ONE MORE GODDAMN TIME,” the locker room collapses into giggles, “I WILL PERSONALLY EVISCERATE HIM.”

“Shrimp are inherently hunchbacks,” Sehun points out while Junmyeon leans against his shoulder good-naturedly. 

“Your rotation position was good today,” Jinki points out. 

“Then tell him to stop calling me a shrimp while ‘Phantom of the Fucking Opera’ is playing.” Minho sits down with a huff. 

“My footwork was fucked up today,” Sehun groans. “I tripped during the turns and went sprawling.” 

“I am sorry,” Yixing apologizes automatically. “I almost step on you.” 

“That’s okay. I wish you had.” 

“SEHUN!” Junmyeon scolds, clapping a hand over his mouth. 

“Kidding,” Sehun murmurs, planting a kiss on his palm. “I’m tiredddd.” 

“I mean, why the fuck does Kyungsoo think combining six jumps in a row is a good exercise?” Minho rants to Jinki. “Is Issac Newton a fucking joke to him?” 

“I ran a clean free skate,” Jongin says quietly into the chaos, wiping down his blades. “Kibum gave me plus 3 GOEs on my combination jump.” There’s a period of momentary silence, then Taemin coos and pats him on the shoulder while Jonghyun holds his hand out for a high five. 

“Good boy,” Minho praises. “Working on winning JGP Poland, I see.” 

“Maybe just… not losing,” Jongin says weakly, but he smiles happily at the praise. 

“Make sure you go to that one bakery,” Jonghyun advises. “They have good breakfast options if you want something local.” 

“Could you find it for me?” Jongin asks eagerly. This is more like the information he was looking for. 

“Of course. And when I went with Taeminnie, we went to this gorgeous hiking trail in the mountains. I can send you that, too; even if you don’t have time to hike, you should really stop by for the views. It’s beautiful in Europe.” Jonghyun slides onto the bench in between Jongin and Yixing to look up the addresses. 

“Jinki-hyung, how do I break the news to Kibum that I’m planning on retiring?” Sehun asks in the background. 

“Sorry, kid, you gotta win a couple of Senior National titles and make it to the Grand Prix Final first,” Jinki chuckles. “Keep working hard.” 

“As if you would ever retire before beating me,” Minho snorts. 

“I surrender,” Sehun sighs weakly. 

“Nope, not allowed to do that either. Cheer up,” Minho claps his shoulder. “You’re improving every day. Everyone is.” 

Bonus time! It's time you meet our Ki-gang Seniors, starting with Jinki and Minho this chapter. We are revealing some information in the bios as well that are not necessarily mentioned in the chapters. Today you'll be able to learn a little more about the competiton history of those two accomplished skaters and why all the young skaters wanted to meet especially them at Cherry Blossom Open and get their autograph.

Small reminder that the ISU has dates in the format of DD.MM.YYYY and we kept that for our version of the ISU bios.

Some of the tables in the bios are too wide for a mobile screen, so you'll have to scroll sideways if you are reading on mobile to see their full (inter)national competition history.

_Men_

Jinki LEE

KOR

Date of birth | 14.12.1994 (24)  
---|---  
Place of birth | Daegu  
Height | 173 cm  
Home town | Daegu  
Profession | N/A  
Hobbies | Fishing  
Start skating / current Club |  **2000** / **Luv Little Freaks Figure Skating Club** |   
Internet / Social Media contact | [dlstmxkakwldrl on Instagram](https://www.instagram.com/dlstmxkakwldrl/)  
  
Coach | Kibum Kim, Kyungsoo Do  
---|---  
Choreographer | Minseok Kim  
Former Coach | N/A  
Practice off season |  **16** h/week **Seoul/SK**  
Practice competitive season |  **20** h/week **Seoul/SK**  
  
Music Short Program as of season 2019/2020  
**Nessun Dorma, Turandot soundtracks by Luciano Pavarotti**

Music Free Skating / Free Dance as of season 2019/2020  
**To Build A Home by the Cinematic Orchestra**

Personal Best Total Score  
---  
289.84 | 19.02.2017 | Four Continents Figure Skating Championships 2017  
Personal Best Score Short Program  
96.65 | 08.01.2016 | South Korean National Championships 2016  
Personal Best Score Free Skate  
193.78 | 19.02.2017 | Four Continents Figure Skating Championships 2017  
  
| 12 / 13 | 13 / 14 | 14 / 15 | 15 / 16 | 16 / 17 | 17 / 18 | 18 / 19 | 19 / 20  
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---  
Olympic Games  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |   
World Championship  |  |  |  | 10 | 6 |  |  |   
European Championship  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |   
Four Continents  | 15 |  | 9 | 2 | 3 | 4 |  |   
World Juniors  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |   
National Championship  | 13.S | 16.S | 7.S | 1.S | 1.S | 3.S | 4.S |   
  
S=Senior; J=Junior; N=Novice

International Competition | Year | Place  
---|---|---  
ISU Rostelecom Cup 2016, Moscow | 2016 | 1.  
ISU Grand Prix Final 2016/2017, Marseille | 2016 | 2.  
ISU Nebelhorn Trophy 2017 | 2017 | 2.  
ISU Cup of China 2017, Beijing | 2017 | 2.  
ISU Skate America 2017, Lake Placid | 2017 | 4.  
ISU Nebelhorn Trophy 2018 | 2018 | 2.  
ISU NHK Trophy 2018, Hiroshima | 2018 | 6.  
ISU Internationaux de France 2018, Grenoble | 2018 | 6.  
  
Lee is the second South Korean man to qualify for the ISU Grand Prix Final after his coach Kibum Kim. At the South Korean National Championships in 2016, Lee’s short program component score broke the current world record by 1.50 points. He enjoys fishing with his mother in his free time.

_Men_

Minho CHOI

KOR

Date of birth | 09.12.1996 (22)  
---|---  
Place of birth | Daegu  
Height | 180 cm  
Home town | Daegu  
Profession | N/A  
Hobbies | Soccer  
Start skating / current Club |  **2000** / **Luv Little Freaks Figure Skating Club** |   
Internet / Social Media contact | [choiminho_1209 on Instagram](https://www.instagram.com/choiminho_1209/)  
  
Coach | Kibum Kim, Kyungsoo Do  
---|---  
Choreographer | Minseok Kim  
Former Coach | N/A  
Practice off season |  **16** h/week **Seoul/SK**  
Practice competitive season |  **20** h/week **Seoul/SK**  
  
Music Short Program as of season 2019/2020  
**Phantom of the Opera by Andrew Lloyd Webber**

Music Free Skating / Free Dance as of season 2019/2020  
**Assassin’s Tango by Jeff Steinberg**

Personal Best Total Score  
---  
280.17 | 13.01.2019 | South Korean National Championships 2019  
Personal Best Score Short Program  
95.12 | 11.12.2014 | ISU Grand Prix Final 2014/2015  
Personal Best Score Free Skate  
186.96 | 13.01.2019 | South Korean National Championships 2019  
  
| 12 / 13 | 13 / 14 | 14 / 15 | 15 / 16 | 16 / 17 | 17 / 18 | 18 / 19 | 19 / 20  
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---  
Olympic Games  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |   
World Championship  |  |  | 4 |  |  |  |  |   
European Championship  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |   
Four Continents  |  | 9 | 1 | 5 | 6 |  |  |   
World Juniors  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |   
National Championship  | 10.J | 9.S | 1.S | 4.S | 3.S |  | 2.S |   
  
S=Senior; J=Junior; N=Novice

International Competition | Year | Place  
---|---|---  
ISU Cup of Nice 2016 | 2016 | 1.  
ISU Trophée de France 2016, Paris | 2016 | 4.  
ISU NHK Trophy 2016, Sapporo | 2016 | 2.  
ISU Nebelhorn Trophy 2017 | 2017 | 4.  
ISU Skate Canada 2017, Regina | 2017 | 5.  
ISU Internationaux de France 2017, Grenoble | 2017 | 4.  
ISU Skate America 2018, Everett | 2018 | 6.  
ISU Rostelecom Cup 2018, Moscow | 2018 | 6.  
  
Choi is best known for his ‘Firebird’ short program in the 2014-2015 competitive season, whereupon he earned the nickname Choi ‘Flaming Charisma’ Minho from his fans. In the 2017-2018 competitive season, Choi shattered his ankle following the Grand Prix series and withdrew from the 2018 South Korean National Championships, missing his chance to make the team for the 2018 Pyeongchang Winter Olympic Games. He has since made a full recovery and has stated that he is looking to make the team for 2022 Beijing.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Finally, after two months of radio silence, Ki-gang is back!  
> I hope you all had happy holidays and a good new year! ^_^  
> Thank you for waiting so patiently for our dear skaters ;-; <3 I hope this chapter of fluff and chaos will make up for all the time we spent away from this fic! And there's also so much more competitions and drama to come, so I hope you can look forward to that ;)  
> Writing this fic honestly feels like I'm living through each of their competition seasons for them, from prepping for press conferences, to thinking about all of their results. This AU holds a very, very special place in my heart, and I'm really happy to share every chapter with you all.  
> Please also enjoy the bios that Aranee worked so hard on! <33333 We'll be back soon~
> 
> Studying for CSAT and being some of the best skaters in the world at the same time. Really rough to be Taemin and Jongin, right? ;)
> 
> Thank you for patiently waiting, we were busy writing for a winter themed fest. Guessing will start tomorrow, maybe you have read our entry and know already? ;D For everyone else, check out the fest, there are some really good stories there: https://twitter.com/exoonicefest
> 
> We are looking forward to your comments and seeing you again soon <3.


	24. Chapter 22

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Underlined dialogue is English.  
>  _Italic_ dialogue is Mandarin Chinese.

Everyone else is at the rink for their first session of the day, but Yixing is currently flicking through his Weibo account in the back of a bus with a cat carrier on his lap. Two stops pass by before he stands up, slings his backpack on the empty seat next to him over his shoulder, grabs the suitcase he has propped between his leg and the side of the bus, and carries all of it up three flights of stairs to tentatively knock on a familiar apartment door. 

"One sec!" a deep voice hollers to him. Yixing waits approximately twenty of those before the door swings open and a puffy-eyed Chanyeol wearing a shirt that looks like it has just been picked up from the floor opens the door. "Morning. Sorry to keep you waiting." 

"It is okay. Thank you for help." Yixing extends the cat carrier out to him. 

"You wanna come in for a minute, see if everything is okay?" Chanyeol slides to the side so Yixing can step through the threshold into Jongin, Chanyeol, and Jongdae’s shared apartment. He spots the cat food, litter box, and a few toys; all transferred yesterday night after practice. 

"Oh. My. God." The door to Jongdae’s room bursts open and he makes a beeline for the fur babies in Chanyeol’s hand. "Cats cats cats cats cats cats--" 

"We’ll take care of them," Chanyeol reassures Yixing as Jongdae devolves to incoherent cooing. "As you can see, Dae loves cats." 

"Okay. Thank you again." Yixing pets Luobo, who is currently curled up in Jongdae’s arms. "You are… save my life." 

"Nah, nah, you’re good." Chanyeol chuckles. 

"You can umm… just… text if need anything. I give you Kakaotalk?" Yixing offers. 

"Yeah, sure." Chanyeol pulls out his phone to exchange contact information. "Sounds good. We should be fine though." 

"I owe you." Yixing bows low. 

"No no, it’s totally fine," Chanyeol protests. "You’re Jongin’s friend, it’s cool. We like to help in any way possible. Good luck, by the way."

"Oh, thank you." Yixing smiles politely. "Appreciate it." 

"Wait, Yixing-ssi." Jongdae looks up from petting Lulu. "Could you actually do us a really big favor?" 

"What?" 

"As a thank you for taking care of the cats, could you ask everyone who isn’t competing if they can come over and commentate Jongin’s event for us so we actually know what the fuck is happening?" There’s a mischievous glint in Jongdae’s eye as he asks, but Yixing is so relieved to have found a cat sitter and so surprised by the simple request that he doesn’t inquire. 

"Of course. They will be happy." 

"Awesome! Thank you so much, Yixing-ssi. Good luck at your Nationals!" 

"You should get going, you’ll miss your flight." Chanyeol checks his watch. "Did you have breakfast? You need help with your luggage?" 

"Yes; no, is okay. Thank you." Yixing gives Luobo one last affectionate pat on the head. "宝贝，怪怪的，啊？爸爸比完赛就回来了。“ _Baobei, be good, okay? Dad will be back as soon as he finishes his competition._

"Yixing-ssi," Jongdae calls as Chanyeol walks him to the door. Yixing turns around, and Jongdae smirks. "Make sure your cute hoobae comes to the watch party. You know, the one Nini likes so much."

Landing in Jilin, Changchun isn’t quite like being back home, but it’s awfully close. Yixing navigates the airport with confidence, reads signs without struggle, and calls a taxi for himself and Minseok, who relies heavily on Yixing for translation. 

"You booked a practice session for this afternoon?" he asks on the ride to their hotel, skimming through the competition schedule on his phone. 

"Yes." Yixing watches the city fly by outside of the car. Even though last Nationals was only a year ago, it’s settling to be back in his home country. Korea is strictly for training. Here, Yixing can relax, despite the mounting pressure on his shoulders to do well at this competition. His phone buzzes with a text.

宝贝 (Baobei) 

宝贝 (Baobei) 

did u land yet 

yes 

do not worry 

宝贝 (Baobei) 

not worrying, just checking in ❤ 

have fun :) 

thank you baobei ❤ 

good luck training. 

"Looks like we have a busy schedule for the next few days." Minseok cheerfully tucks his phone back into his pocket. "Let’s do our best."

MEN - SHORT PROGRAM, STARTING ORDER

1 |  Luanfeng LI  
---|---  
2 |  Mutong LIU  
3 |  Runqi LIU  
4 |  Qinglong RONG  
5 |  Zhibo QU  
6 |  He ZHANG  
7 |  Lap Kan Lincoln YUEN  
8 |  Yixing ZHANG  
9 |  Zhihong LIU  
10 |  Boyang JIN  
  
www.isu.org

"I don’t get it." Sehun worries his lip as he stares at the textbook splayed out in front of him on the table. 

"Which one?" Junmyeon looks up from grading papers for his professor and adjusts his glasses. 

"All of them. I don’t get anything." Sehun twirls his pencil carelessly. "I don’t even care anymore. I’m not gonna do well for midterms." 

"You will do fine." Junmyeon pulls the textbook towards himself and reads the question while Sehun drums out the beat of his short program music on the table. "Alright, come here. Let’s do it together." 

"Wanna do you," Sehun murmurs, staring at his boyfriend shamelessly. Junmyeon pays him no attention. 

"Start with this. Draw a schematic so that you know what you’re working with." The elder holds his hand out for his boyfriend’s notes. Sehun gives him his hand instead and slumps over on the table. 

"I’m tiredddd." 

"Oh Sehun." Junmyeon’s tone becomes strict. Sehun is undeterred. 

"Professor, I’ll do anything to get an A." He licks his lips and smiles at Junmyeon cheekily. 

"Notebook, please." Sehun finally gives in and hands it over. "Sit up straight. Focus." 

"You’re hot when you’re concentrating," Sehun mutters, but he sits up and sighs resignedly as Junmyeon refuses to acknowledge his flirting. "It’s too difficult." 

"Draw the two points that they give you," Junmyeon instructs. "Right here." Sehun obeys. "What now?" 

"Find… the equation." 

"Mhm. And what information do you need to determine the equation for a line in 3-D space?"

"Dunno." Sehun stares off into space. 

"How do you find a linear equation in 2-D?" 

"Two points, then you do the… slope thingy. I hate finding--" 

"So what if you add a dimension?" Junmyeon waits patiently while Sehun squints at him. "It’s not a trick question." 

"Three… points?" 

"Right. And you have this information; how are you going to get those three points?" Junmyeon taps Sehun’s half-hearted schematic. 

"I don’t know." Sehun pouts and rolls his eyes cutely. Junmyeon presses his lips together, then sighs very quietly. 

"Sehunnie." Upon hearing the affectionate nickname, the younger perks up. "If you finish this chapter, we can take a nap together before you go to practice." Sehun’s eyes go wide. "No more studying until after practice and workout," Junmyeon promises. 

"Cuddles?" 

"Cuddles and a nap." Junmyeon smothers his laughter as Sehun leans forward and bends over the problem, lips moving as he reads it to himself again. 

"A direction vector with the two points?" Sehun asks, looking up at Junmyeon for confirmation. "And use either point to make the equation?" The elder smiles. 

"Try it." Junmyeon watches over the younger as he solves the problem. "Good boy. See? You can do it." 

"I’m stupid. I don’t get my classes." 

"You’re not stupid, Sehunnie. You just solved it. I know skating takes up a lot of time and makes you tired, so it’s hard to study. But you just need to get a little done every day, and you’ll be fine for your midterms," Junmyeon consoles.

"Mhm." Sehun sighs and twirls his pen. 

"Okay." Junmyeon marks a green check mark next to the answer. "Let’s move on to the next one."

The click of camera shutters and reporters dressed in heavy coats surround Yixing and Minseok as soon as he gets off the ice, breathing hard after his short program. 

"Perfect." Minseok embraces his student in a warm hug, then they walk over to the kiss and cry bench to wait for his score. "Good boy." Yixing dabs sweat off of his forehead while he monitors the slow-motion replays. 

"Shaky here?" Yixing asks Minseok, pointing to his Quad Flip-Triple Toe combination. "I feel… need fight hard for landing." 

"Yeah, a little." Minseok nods. "I’m worried you didn’t sit low enough in your final combination spin." 

"Tired," Yixing huffs, trying to catch his breath. He glances up at the cameras and waves, then bows his head. "谢谢大家一直支持我。辛苦了，辛苦了。" _Thank you for always supporting me, everyone. You’ve worked hard._

_"The scores for Zhang Yixing. He has earned 95.25 points in the short program, putting him into first place."_

CURRENT STANDINGS

1 |  Yixing ZHANG | 95.25  
---|---|---  
2 |  He ZHANG | 73.46  
3 |  Mutong LIU | 60.77  
4 |  Luanfeng LI | 58.04  
5 |  Qinglong RONG | 56.59  
  
www.isu.org

"Season’s best," Minseok remarks. "Crushed Cherry Blossom by six points." 

"Uh huh." Yixing doesn’t dare say anything more, because the press are hanging on to his every movement. He stands up and bows, then makes his way backstage, where he is still hounded by reporters and cameras. 

_"Excuse me, Yixing, could we have a quick post-program interview?"_

_"Yixing, now that you’re guaranteed to join the Top 3 press conference, could we ask a few preliminary questions?"_

_"Yixing, do you think you’ll continue your lead after the last two skaters compete?"_ It’s chaotic and terrifying if one has never been in the spotlight, but Yixing hands his tissue box and water bottle to Minseok, who stands just out of frame from the cameras like an experienced coach should. 

_"I can take a few questions."_ Dozens get fired at him, but Yixing knows what most of them are about, so his answer is general, but concise. _"I’m happy with how I skated just now in the short program."_

_"Yixing, you’re currently in the lead, but Jin Boyang is the last to skate, and he won over you last year. Do you think you will stay in first going into the free skate?"_

_"Jin Boyang is a great competitor and we’re good friends. I wish him luck."_ Yixing flashes his dimple and a thumbs up. At least 10 camera shutters click at the same time. _"I’ll entertain all other questions at the press conference. Thank you."_

"Whew, it’s been a while since we’ve done that," Minseok remarks with a bright, undeterred smile when they finally reach the media checkpoint. 

"Soooo many reporter." Yixing places a hand over his chest and sighs. "Ah, who skate now?" 

"Boyang’s on the ice." Both of them turn towards the live broadcast on the TV in the lounge, where a few other skaters and coaches are gathered to watch the defending National champion. Yixing distractedly unties his skates while Minseok stands over him with crossed arms anxiously, both of them intensely focused on Boyang’s performance. 

"Wah," Yixing remarks at the younger’s huge Quad Lutz. "Wow." Quad Toe-Triple Toe. Yixing’s hands shake as he pulls at his laces. He wants the lead more than anything, but Boyang is putting up a fight, refusing to let any points slip through his grasp. 

"A big Triple Axel," Minseok remarks. Yixing can only nod while Boyang flies through his footwork and into a fast, centered combination spin. The crowd’s excitement can be heard through the TV and dimly from the stadium. In the corner of the screen, the younger’s technical score tips past Yixing’s by 1.78 points. It’s highly unlikely that Boyang’s artistic score will be low enough to keep Yixing in first place. Minseok tsks and opens his phone to answer Kibum’s texts. With a ragged sigh, Yixing begins collecting his thoughts for the press conference.

MEN, STANDINGS AFTER SHORT PROGRAM

1 |  Boyang JIN | 98.01  
---|---|---  
2 |  Yixing ZHANG | 95.25  
3 |  He ZHANG | 73.46  
4 |  Mutong LIU | 60.77  
5 |  Luanfeng LI | 58.04  
6 |  Qinglong RONG | 56.59  
7 |  Zhibo QU | 54.24  
8 |  Runqi LIU | 52.08  
9 |  Lap Kan Lincoln YUEN | 49.71  
10 |  Zhihong LIU | 44.47  
  
www.isu.org

_"This question is for Zhang Yixing. In 2016, you announced that you were making the decision to move your training location from Changsha to Seoul, South Korea and switch coaches to Kim Kibum."_

_"Right."_ Yixing nods. 

_"Could you talk about how that change has affected your training?"_

Yixing leans forward and adjusts his microphone. _"I really enjoy my training in Korea. I think Coach Kibum has done a really good job with his program and team; you don’t need me to tell you that. His students--my teammates--they’re sweeping up medals on the international stage. He’s got a talented group of Juniors as well. And I personally feel like I have improved a lot under his instruction. I won’t give away all his secrets, but Coach is highly detail-oriented, and I think the way that I have approached my skating has changed according to his ideas."_

_"If we were to examine the general trend of skaters, your competition history appears to fit the conventional rise to the top. In recent years as well, you have done well, but I wanted to ask if you anticipated a… significant improvement when you switched to Kim Kibum."_ Wow. Yixing struggles to keep his face neutral. 

Back in Korea, where Kibum is monitoring the live stream of the press conference, his mouth drops in shock. "What the fuck do they mean by that?" he snaps. 

"What did they ask?" Minho asks between sips of water. He glances at Kibum’s laptop set up by the boards. 

"They just asked Yixing if he thought he was gonna suddenly shoot to fame by switching to me, and implied that he hasn’t made substantial improvement despite the coaching change." Kibum lets out a disbelieving laugh. "That’s bold." 

_"There is nothing wrong with being conventional."_ Yixing chooses his words carefully. _"As long as I keep striving for upwards growth and improvement, then I will consider myself successful. Good skaters aren’t made by miracles, they’re built from hard work. I expected nothing when I made the change; I only set goals and chased them."_

"He’s in second at fucking Nationals, what other improvement do you want?" Kibum throws his hands in the air frustratedly. 

"They’re always like that." Jinki joins the conversation. "If you’re slow and steady, they beat you up for not being a dark horse. If you’re a dark horse, they call you out and say you’ll disappear in two years. Can’t do anything right. He dodged the bullet nicely." 

_"Skaters who train in other countries may also represent the country of their home rink. If you were offered an opportunity to skate for a different nation--South Korea, for instance--would you accept it as an alternate, easier route to the World Championships?"_

_"I skate for China. I have never thought about doing anything else."_ Yixing taps the flag on his team jacket. _"And I do not think skating for South Korea would be easier. They have Shim Changmin, Lee Taemin, and Choi Minho. I would also have to contend with Jinki, Yunho, Kyuhyun, Hyukjae. All of whom are viable candidates for those three spots South Korea has at the World Championships this year. I would much rather spend the time needed to process a nation change competing for my home country."_ Yixing clears his throat. _"I would like to make one thing clear--I am here to win the **Chinese** National Championships. This is the goal I have set for myself." _

"Atta boy," Minseok murmurs from his seat, nodding in approval. 

_"Thank you, Mr. Zhang. The next set of questions are for Jin Boyang, who is currently in first after the short program."_ Yixing sits back in his chair with a quiet sigh of relief. _"First off, how are you feeling after your performance? Are you confident in your lead over Yixing?"_

_"I felt good out there. I think I did well today,"_ Boyang says. _"The Quad Lutz felt really good, and I’m happy with the marks I received. Of course, I would like to stay in the lead, but Yixing-ge is a very fierce competitor, and we all know that figure skating isn’t the most predictable sport."_ This earns a few polite laughs. _"He is strong in areas that I know I need to improve in; for instance, my short program this year was designed for me to focus on artistry. So I think at any moment, one of us might overtake the other."_

_"You have a good Toe jump."_ Yixing decides to speak again, and Boyang, along with everyone else in the conference room, turns to him. _"Quad Toe-Triple Toe combination. Toe is one of the jumps which I struggle with."_

_"Ah, thank you, ge ge."_ Boyang laughs. 

_"No matter who goes to Worlds this year, I consider Boyang extremely qualified to represent China."_ Yixing inclines his head to the other skater. _"Sorry, di. Stole your spotlight."_

_"No, no, it’s okay. The point is to interact, right?"_ The younger skater smiles. _"But I agree with Yixing-ge, I think every skater has worked really hard for a spot at Nationals, and we’re all trying to show our best to the Association."_

"Nini," a voice murmurs behind him, and Jongin flinches so hard that he nearly drops the dumbbell on his foot. "Oh, I’m sorry. Finish your reps." Taemin laughs and backs up. The younger clenches his teeth and ignores the burning in his arms for the last five curls. Then he drops the weights with a sigh of relief and looks behind him.

"What’s up?"

"Do you want to meet up after workout?" Jongin’s mouth forms a perfect ‘o’ of surprise before he shuts it sharply with a snap. Don’t smile too big, don’t act like an idiot, don’t get overex--

"YES! I--uh--yeah, yeah, sure." His heart wags an imaginary tail so hard that it falls off of its body; his mind metaphorically rolls its eyes. _Simp, simp, simp,_ his brain cells chant in unison. _You are a simp._ "Didn’t you say that you always study after workouts though? Or rather, Jonghyun-hyung always makes you study after workouts?" Jongin twists his fingers nervously together. 

"This is more important." Taemin beams at him, all sunshine-esque and beautiful. Jongin almost cries. 

"You know, I always want workouts to be over as fast as possible, but I have never looked forward to it more than today," Jongin remarks over his shoulder as he walks over to the treadmills. Taemin giggles.

"Where are we going?" Jongin wonders out loud. They’ve still got their skate bags on them, and both of them are smelly and sweaty after a horrible upper body circuit. Of course, he’d be happy to travel to the ends of the earth with Taemin by his side, but given the extenuating circumstances--JGP Poland in a few days, Nebelhorn Trophy in a week--he figures they’re probably staying local. Taemin leads him down the block, confusing the younger even more as he makes a beeline for the ice rink when they reach the painfully familiar building. "The rink?" 

"You said you wanted to do good at JGP, right? Let me help you do good." There appears to be a halo above Taemin’s head as he turns to Jongin. 

"Didn’t you want to… meet up?" Jongin asks lamely. In response, Taemin motions to the two of them, standing in the empty rink, looking out at a fresh sheet of ice. "This is an extra practice session, Taem." 

"A meet up," Taemin corrects him, walking over to a bench and pulling his skates up. "Let’s skate!" Why does he sound so _excited?_ Jongin collects all the happiness that is slowly swirling down the drain inside him and redirects it. He is okay. It’s still private time with Taemin. His arms feel like lead weights and existing is a form of exercise right now, but he’s spending time with the prettiest, most talented, cutest boy in the world. So it’s fine; everything cancels out. 

"I am so fucking tired, Taemin-ah," is what comes out of Jongin’s mouth despite that foolproof pep talk. 

"It’s okay. Your muscle memory will remember the jumps. Besides, this is the best way to train endurance." Taemin stands up and shakes his legs out. "I’ll wait for you on the ice." 

Does Jongin want a JGP medal or is he just easy for Lee Taemin? It’s hard to tell as he laces his skates up and shrugs on his team jacket, just as a reminder for what he’s fighting so hard for. Taemin is already working on edge exercises when the younger ~~glides~~ drags himself into the rink, head hanging so low that his chin touches his chest. 

"Why do you look so down?" Taemin skids to a stop behind him and delivers a wind-chilled, cheerful back hug. "Let’s warm up together." Jongin’s head tips back onto Taemin’s shoulder and he sighs. 

"This is going to be a mess, but okay." He ends up being correct. His arms feel like wet spaghetti noodles when he pulls into jumps, and Taemin tells him as much, arms crossed strictly in front of his chest as he settles into critique mode. 

"Most people think that jumps are successful because of your lower body, but if you don’t use your arms, then you’re finished. Watch me." As if Jongin needs to be told to do so. Taemin pushes off of the wall, gathers speed, and executes a graceful Triple Flip that looks so easy, it may as well be a Double. How does he do that after an entire day's worth of training? 4.5 hours on the ice and a 1.5 hour workout have Jongin on his knees, but Taemin looks like he’s just getting started. The realization of just how much stronger, experienced, and talented Taemin is compared to him hits Jongin like a nasty fall on a Quad Flip. Is he really that far behind? And if so, how could he even entertain the idea of catching up to Taemin? Forget him; even older Senior skaters who have years of training and competition experience can’t beat this extraordinary 19-year old. No matter how many times Jongin tries to tell himself otherwise, the lonely, haunting feeling of Imposter Syndrome comes back to him. He simply cannot keep up. He does not belong here. 

"Did you see the movement of my arms? I know it was fast, but that’s how it should be. Walk through it with me really slowly right here." Taemin stops in front of Jongin and gets into position. The younger stares at him for a second, then reluctantly copies his movements. "Your timing is still inconsistent. Try and remember the count that Kyungsoo tells you, and try again." 

_There’s no point!_ Jongin wants to protest. _I’ll never be half as good as you!_ But he skates away nonetheless to apply Taemin’s corrections, still focused on insulting himself as much as possible. The result is a Triple Flip that barely feels like he expended any effort when he glides out of it. 

"Yes! Yes, that’s it. That was gorgeous!" Taemin claps excitedly. Jongin holds the landing in shock. 

"Was that a Triple?" 

"Yes, of course." 

"It felt so easy, though?" Jongin makes it a question. 

"You, like a lot of other skaters, struggle with this. You spend so much time focusing on controlling your movements that you forget the most important part of this sport--the ice." Taemin does a little spin. "Its surface and your blade touch very, very delicately. But that connection holds the key to skating. Once you learn how to utilize that connection, things will click into place with almost no effort. This is why your best jumps happen when you are not thinking hard about them, and you let your body do the hard work for you. Come here." Taemin holds his hand out and pulls Jongin to start skating. "Just glide on one foot." The younger obeys, watching the eager sparkle in Taemin’s eyes and focusing on the warmth of his touch. "Bend your knees, and find the connection. I can only explain it so much. This is a feeling that you have to learn to recognize." 

Jongin does, but for the most part, his movements feel completely normal, like they usually do when he skates. There’s no sensation of floating across the ice, like there was a minute ago when he tried his Flip. "Keep gliding. Find it again, I can see you haven’t yet," Taemin encourages. He skates like he is on threads of silk; even the simple action of gliding backwards and pulling Jongin along looks intricate. Jongin watches the elder’s hair fly into his eyes and his hopeful gaze. As they round the corner, he feels it. It even has a sound--not the classic rip of edges cutting into the ice--something more muted and quiet, almost like a high-pitched whine, except it doesn’t grate on the ears. "You got it. Your entire posture just changed in my hands." Taemin smiles proudly. "Keep it, keep it, keep it--" Jongin shifts, and the feeling is gone. "That’s okay. It takes time to capture it," Taemin reassures him. "But that’s what you need to find. Not Quads, not combinations. This is everything." 

"How do you know this?" Jongin asks in awe. He has felt it inadvertently a few times before, he’s sure of it--when he landed his Quad Flip for the first time, and during his Triple Lutz-Triple Toe combination in his free skate at JGP USA. But he has never noted it down as particular. 

"Because I spent so much time on the ice that I became lazy. But surprisingly, that was when I started getting better. I stopped trying to force everything, and let my blades do the difficult work." Taemin smiles. "You don’t need the connection to become a great skater. Even some of the best skaters in the world right now can’t control it, even if they’re aware of it. But the best of the best have mastered it, and you can see it in their skating. Like Hanyu." Taemin’s eyes light up. "Hanyu understands it extremely well." 

"I was going to say Hanyu," Jongin agrees. "And you, apparently." Taemin’s cheeks puff out bashfully at the compliment.

"Minseok, Kibum, and Kyungsoo are also amazing at connecting. Kibum only ever glides around on two feet, but he floats on the ice. You can see it, right?" Jongin nods. "Because he knows. It’s also why he doesn’t rush the Quads, and places so much emphasis on skating skills." 

It feels as if all the negativity swirling around in Jongin’s chest has simply been swept up and forgotten. Jongin feels light, and he’s also hopeful. Taemin has shared with him a powerful piece of technique that thrums with potential. Jongin pauses, unsure of how to say ‘thank you’ without being cheesy. 

"Try your Flip-Euler-Flip combination," Taemin suggests. "See if you can find the connection again. I hope your score will go up if you can grasp it for a couple of jumps in Poland."

"Minseok!" The choreographer looks up from his phone and smiles widely as a familiar face approaches him.

"How are you, Youngjae-ah?" 

"Good, good. How about you? I see Kibum didn’t come with?"

"He’s at Nebelhorn Trophy in a week or so. You know how crazy competition schedules get." From a yoga mat, Yixing glances up at his coach and Youngjae, giving them both a polite smile and inclining his head. Minseok gestures to him. "My student, Yixing. Xing, this is Son Youngjae, choreographer and artistic director of the skating tour ‘FROST.’"

"Ah." Yixing nods in recognition of the show name. 

"No need for an introduction." Youngjae smiles. "Of course I know the fan favorite." 

"No, no," Yixing protests, standing up to shake hands and bow. "Not at all." 

"On the contrary, everyone’s talking about you and Boyang. It’s nice to meet you. Please go back to your warm up, I don’t want to interrupt. Good luck for the free skate today." Youngjae smiles kindly, so Yixing tucks his earbuds back in and continues to stretch. "I’m glad I saw you here, I’ve been meaning to chat with you. Do you have time now?" 

"Xing, I’m going to--?" Minseok trails off, and Yixing nods. 

"Okay." 

"We’re looking to produce something extraordinary for the tour this year." Youngjae gets straight to the point. "I need someone with a strong background in both dance and singles." 

"Flattered that you came to me." Minseok smiles widely. "I’m afraid I don’t have a good answer for you right now, though. It’s too early to tell what my plans for the tour season will be. And Woohyun asked me about the possibility of choreographing for him at Cherry Blossom, which means I have more work than usual. I’m certainly interested in what your plans are, though."

"Well, of course, we have the storyline, and come tour season, I think we’ll have some great skaters who will sign a contract with us. Maybe some of yours, even? But I want a fresh, unique choreographer. We need something modern and abstract." 

"It certainly sounds interesting." Minseok’s mouth quirks to the side in contemplation. "I’ll reach out to you. Around what time would you start casting?" 

"Probably after South Korean Nationals." 

"I can give you an answer by then. Maybe even earlier. I got offered to fly to America to choreograph for ‘Stars on Ice’, but I was looking for something more accomodating anyway." 

"Thank you so much, Minseok. Also, I wanted to ask--is that kid of yours planning on touring during the off season? Lee Taemin?" Youngjae inquires hopefully, placing his hands in his pockets. 

"Oh, I’m not sure. We’ve barely touched on the subject." Minseok laughs loud. "You’ll have to ask him personally, rest assured I can’t speak for any of his plans." 

"Please give him my business card if he is." Youngjae fumbles in the pocket of his blazer. "I won’t lie to you, I’ve had my eye on him from his performance at Junior Worlds two years ago. The contract would be competitive, I assure you." 

"I’ll let him know," Minseok promises. "‘FROST’ is one of the best ice shows in South Korea, so I’ll tell him to consider it." 

"Please do, Minseok. Thank you. I should let you get back to your student now." Youngjae bows and shakes hands. "Good luck to both of you. I’ll be watching."

MEN - FREE SKATING, STARTING ORDERSHORT PROGRAM

1 |  Lap Kan Lincoln YUEN | 9 | 49.71  
---|---|---|---  
2 |  Qinglong RONG | 6 | 56.59  
3 |  Zhihong LIU | 10 | 44.47  
4 |  Runqi LIU | 8 | 52.08  
5 |  Zhibo QU | 7 | 54.24  
6 |  Luanfeng LI | 5 | 58.04  
7 |  He ZHANG | 3 | 73.46  
8 |  Yixing ZHANG | 2 | 95.25  
9 |  Boyang JIN | 1 | 98.01  
10 |  Mutong LIU | 4 | 60.77  
  
www.isu.org

"Hi, hyung!" Jongin beams happily when the video call connects. "Good morning." 

"Good evening, more like." Minho sets the laptop on the coffee table so that Jinki, Taemin, Kibum, and Jonghyun all come into view. 

"Hi, Coach." Jongin waves. "Is Sehun there?" 

"Sehun said he would watch with Junmyeon," Jinki informs him. 

"How have your practices been, Nini?" Kibum rests his cheek in his hand, leaning against the arm of the couch.

"They’ve been good. The time difference has been crazy, but today’s the first day that I feel somewhat normal. I’ve been skating at the rink a few miles east from the actual one since the practices are emptier." 

"The one I told you about?" Taemin perks up. "Isn’t it nice?"

"Yeah." Jongin smiles.

"Official practice is this afternoon, is it not?" Kibum asks. Jongin nods. "And how’s Kyungsoo been?" 

"... Normal?" Jongin laughs nervously. 

"Is he scaring you?" Kibum asks abruptly. 

"No! No. He’s fine." Jongin fidgets with the hem of his pajamas and glances up at the TV, where the Chinese Nationals free skate is showing. The last group has just taken the ice for warm-up. "Poor Liu Mutong, nobody is going to watch him after Yixing-hyung and Boyang." 

"Minseok said he was doing fine. Extremely nervous, but Yixing always skates better with a few jitters." Kibum heaves a sigh. 

"You look like you’re more nervous than he probably is," Jinki notes. 

"I am about to explode." Kibum exhales loudly. "Need to get him to Worlds." 

"He’ll do well." Jonghyun watches the warm up group with vague interest. "He has worked hard."

"Chinese Nationals is a sight," Minho remarks. "Yixing’s lead is about 20 points over third place." 

"Yeah, well, we need to be about three points higher to take first." Kibum’s eyes are glued to his student, wincing when Yixing steps out of a Triple Axel. "Ohhhh, God." 

"It’s a miracle you’ve made it this far as a coach," Minho says dryly, watching Kibum tilt his head furiously to the side. 

"Double run-through first thing tomorrow morning." 

"I refuse, you’re just salty." Minho chuckles fearlessly and throws his arm around Taemin’s shoulders. Jongin watches him with mild envy as the skaters clear the ice, leaving the first competitor in the group. 

"Wow, that was an… interesting… landing." Jinki tilts his head to the side. 

"His toe pick hit the ice off-kilter during the take off," Jonghyun observes. 

"Seemed like hesitation going into the jump as well," Minho agrees. There’s a few more comments from everyone as the rest of the skaters pass by, but like the crowd in the stadium, the watching group of skaters are mostly waiting for Yixing to show up. When he does, Jongin claps quietly in his hotel room while Minho and Jonghyun cheer obnoxiously. 

"Hush!" Kibum snaps tensely, having stood up from the couch. 

"Wow. We really need to get you by the boards. You’re way less nervous when you’re in coaching mode." Jinki chuckles. 

_"Please welcome Zhang Yixing."_

"I wish we could understand the commentary," Jongin laments, feeling his heartbeat quicken in anticipation of his hyung’s performance. 

"Yeah, me, too." Jonghyun sighs regretfully. Under Minho’s wing, Taemin watches quietly, head tilted to the side. Jongin gets a little too distracted watching soft strands of hair fall into the elder’s eyes that he doesn’t even notice Yixing has started his program until Minho claps loudly. 

"Gorgeous Quad Lutz-Triple Toe." Jonghyun nods approvingly. "He’s on his A game today." 

"Speed, speed, speed," Jinki murmurs under his breath, then holds it for the Quad Toe. "Okay, perfect." 

"Ohhh, that was supposed to be a combination." Minho winces when Yixing does a solitary Quad Salchow. "He had a Triple Toe planned on that, right?" 

"Is he going to do that Toe in the second half?" Jinki wonders out loud. 

"I think he’ll probably put it on the Triple Axel," Kibum says absently. "It’s his best jump, after all." 

"Good call that he didn’t do the Toe, though. That Salchow landing was pretty tight." Jonghyun taps his fingers against his thighs. "Here it comes. Triple Axel-Triple Toe--WHEW, THAT WAS HOT." 

"Hot is a good word for it," Minho nods approvingly. "It was pretty sexy of him." 

"So elegant," Taemin murmurs. Yixing looks like he has fallen into the cadence of the music now, and he isn’t as tight as he was in the beginning of his program. A long spread eagle sequence, where his hips are opened wide and his right skate follows his left one backwards beautifully, gets followed by an easy Triple Flip, then his third Quad, both of which are clean. 

"Kibum, I think you can relax, he’s really feeling himself," Jinki comments. "Yixing’s very consistent with his performance. See?" Jinki claps as the second Triple Axel gets landed beautifully. 

"Wow." Jongin watches, spellbound, as Yixing finishes the rest of his free skate elegantly with fast, centered spins and a graceful ending position. "Wow." 

"Okay, if they don’t send him to Worlds, I’m just going to go ahead and retire this year," Kibum announces. Jinki frowns. 

"Why does everyone keep trying to steal my spotlight?" 

"You can just take my place." Kibum falls back onto the couch relievedly. "I’m getting too old for this excitement." Minseok waves at the camera along with Yixing. 

"Hyung is handsome," Jongin murmurs, watching Yixing bow and clasp his hands together. 

_"The scores please for Zhang Yixing."_ Tense silence. _"His total segment score: 207.40, bringing his combined score to 302.65. Yixing is currently in first place."_

"Andddd let’s hope he stays there." Jinki crosses his fingers while the camera pans to Boyang, circling the ice with fire in his eyes.

CURRENT STANDINGS

1 |  Yixing ZHANG | 302.65  
---|---|---  
2 |  He ZHANG | 211.51  
3 |  Runqi LIU | 165.67  
4 |  Luanfeng LI | 164.74  
5 |  Zhibo QU | 163.95  
  
www.isu.org

_"Baobei."_ Yixing calls Baekhyun right after the press conference. "Baek, I made it." 

"You--ay, hold on a minute, guys--YOU MADE IT?!" Baekhyun shrieks. 

"I am first." Yixing paces back and forth in the empty athlete’s lounge, trying to walk off the urge to roar in triumph. "They send me. I-I got assignment." 

"Oh my God. Oh my God, Xing." Baekhyun’s voice comes in through the receiver, proud and elated. "Babe, that’s so good. I’m so fucking proud of you--HELLO, ANYBODY ALIVE IN BOT LANE?!--you’re literally the BEST, Xing Xing, I told you that you were going to do fine. You did so good. I’m busy dying because bitches can’t play a simple game of League of Legends, but--is my mic muted? I hope it’s muted. You have to come back soon, baby, I’m gonna give you a big ass kiss. Congratulations, Xing Xing." 

"You give me kiss?" Yixing asks, amused. He’s giddy with excitement, and so relieved. It feels like he can breathe now. "Really?" 

"I--what, am I not allowed to kiss my boyfriend? My extremely hot boyfriend who just made Worlds and was crowned China’s National Champion? You’re literally so kissable. How the fuck did I even get you?" 

_"Oh, so we’re not shy anymore, hmm?"_ Yixing laughs and refuses to translate. "I see you at home, baobei. I miss you. Thank you." Back to kisses and cuddles with his two cats, boyfriend, and a trip to Worlds. It sounds a lot like heaven to him.

MEN, FINAL RESULTS

1 |  Yixing ZHANG | 302.65  
---|---|---  
2 |  Boyang JIN | 302.59  
3 |  He ZHANG | 211.51  
4 |  Runqi LIU | 165.67  
5 |  Luanfeng LI | 164.74  
6 |  Zhibo QU | 163.95  
7 |  Qinglong RONG | 158.45  
8 |  Mutong LIU | 155.44  
9 |  Lap Kan Lincoln YUEN | 134.96  
10 |  Zhihong LIU | 113.47  
  
www.isu.org

JUNIOR MEN - SHORT PROGRAM, STARTING ORDER

1 |  Noah BODENSTEIN  
---|---  
2 |  Corey CIRCELLI  
3 |  Daniil SAMSONOV  
4 |  Yann FRECHON  
5 |  Luanfeng LI  
6 |  Makar SUNTSEV  
7 |  Daniel GRASSL  
8 |  Rakhat BRALIN  
9 |  Sinali SANGO  
10 |  Louis WEISSERT  
11 |  Aleksandr SELEVKO  
12 |  Ryan DUNK  
13 |  Alexander LEBEDEV  
14 |  Yuma KAGIYAMA  
15 |  Didier DIJKSTRA  
16 |  Alp Eren OZKAN  
17 |  Kornel WITKOWSKI  
18 |  Egor KHLOPKOV  
19 |  Gleb LUTFULLIN  
20 |  Joseph Alexander ZAKIPOUR  
21 |  Ivan SHMURATKO  
22 |  Jongin KIM  
23 |  Dinh TRAN  
24 |  Andreas NORDEBACK  
25 |  Jakub LOFEK  
26 |  Filip SCERBA  
27 |  Joseph PHAN  
  
www.isu.org

Jongin stumbles on his Triple Flip in the short program warm-up and winces in frustration as he gets off. He half-expected Kyungsoo to launch into some long, detailed correction about technique, but instead, he drapes his long overcoat over Jongin’s shoulders and leads him by the elbow into the warmth of the lobby to wait for his turn to skate. 

"My Flip is weird today," Jongin mumbles, more to himself than anyone. 

"No. It’s fine." Kyungsoo sits next to him and crosses one leg over the other. "Take some deep breaths." His voice is soft as usual, but with a touch of unfamiliar gentility. Jongin shivers and tries to calm his nerves. He’s been doing good in practice. He’s worked hard. No need to try and consciously control all his movements. "Jongin-ah, you’re still so tense." Kyungsoo tugs the jacket snugly around his student. "Breathe with me." In. Out. In. Out. Jongin silently marvels at how calming Kyungsoo’s presence is. He had been expecting to be yelled at until he dissolved into tears at every practice, but Kyungsoo has been nothing but comforting. He even texts Jongin every mealtime to ask if he has eaten. 

"Better," Kyungsoo says softly when Jongin begins to relax. "Much better." Jongin feels relaxed now, loose and even hazy-minded. His coach tugs him to his feet, takes the jacket back, and holds his hands out for Jongin’s team jacket and skate guards. "Go now, Nini. You can do it." He claps quietly with the rest of the audience. The moment that the beginning percussion rings through the rink, he sees Jongin sink into headspace. His skating is fluid, practiced, unrushed. Triple Axel--Kyungsoo forms a small fist of victory as Jongin nails it. He needed that for any shot near the podium and for future progress, and it was perfect. His skater tenses up for a fraction of a second before his Triple Loop, but cheers erupt from the crowd as Jongin rotates cleanly and lands smoothly as well.

"Good," Kyungsoo calls, even though Jongin won’t hear him in his combination spin. Fast and centered. There’s little to worry about--Jongin looks sure today, he looks confident in his steps. Whether it be because of quiet, private practices in which he has had time to forget about the pressure and simply focus on skating, or because he managed to relax before the short program, Jongin’s final jumping pass--Triple Lutz-Triple Toe--along with his footwork and last two spins are just as strong. That combination is really becoming his best one. "Stunning," he praises when Jongin steps off the ice, breathing hard and looking as if he has just woken up from a dream. 

"It all went by so fast," he gasps. "I have no idea what I did." 

"You did beautifully." Kyungsoo’s lips curl up when the score reflects his words.

CURRENT STANDINGS

1 |  Daniil SAMSONOV | 87.33  
---|---|---  
2 |  Yuma KAGIYAMA | 84.72  
3 |  Daniel GRASSL | 81.01  
4 |  Jongin KIM | 79.55  
5 |  Gleb LUTFULLIN | 76.35  
  
www.isu.org

Jongin’s hands fly up to cover his mouth in utter shock. "I’M IN FOURTH?" 

"You did well. Why are you so surprised?" Kyungsoo chuckles. 

"I’ve NEVER scored this well in my life." Jongin presses a hand to his heart. 

"Well, you landed the Triple Axel perfectly, and the program was clean from head to toe. This was definitely the best that you have ever skated, so a score like this is well deserved." Kyungsoo pats Jongin on the back. "Kibum will be very proud of you. I am, too." 

"Oh my gosh," Jongin whispers in disbelief. "I’m fourth?" 

"Well, you have a few formidable competitors left to go, but I predict that you’ll probably stay on the podium going into the free skate." Kyungsoo scrolls through the list of skaters who have yet to skate. "Relax and take the rest of the night easy. You deserve this."

"Do I?" Jongin asks as they walk into the lobby together. 

"Figure skating does not give medals to those who don’t deserve it," comes Kyungsoo’s even answer. 

"What about politics?" Jongin whispers. 

"You cannot discuss these things at a competition, Nini. Especially when you move up to Senior," Kyungsoo warns him. 

"Sorry." 

"Politics play much less of a role in dictating placements than you think. Hard work is your number one ally." Kyungsoo answers the question anyway, because there’s nobody important around. "You did well. Take your skates off; I’m sure you want to watch the rest of your event."

"Stop that." Chanyeol shifts on the couch. A furry head chases him, followed by a sharp nip. "Stop." He pulls away. "Go find Jongdae." Luobo fixes him with a stare. It almost feels condescending. A second cat leaps up onto the couch and lands in his lap. Chanyeol grumbles and flicks through his phone half-heartedly. 

"What do you need." 

"I’m cooking your cats," Chanyeol announces into his phone, batting Luobo’s paws away from his sweatshirt. 

"NO!" Jongdae shrieks. 

"They keep biting--OW, get off!" Chanyeol tries to stand, but Lulu complains in his lap. 

"You can’t cook them, they’re not my cats. Did you feed them?" 

"Just come home from class and get them off of me, please." 

"Babies, is Chanyeol being mean?" Jongdae coos. "He’s not fun, is he?" 

"Excuse you, I’m heaps of fucking fun," Chanyeol snarls as Luobo happily gnaws on his fingers. "When is Yixing coming to pick them up, oh my God." 

"I told him to take his time. I’ll miss them when they’re gone." Jongdae sighs. "I’m heading home now." 

"You better be. We need to clean up a bit for the viewing party tonight. AH!" Chanyeol splutters and drops the phone. 

"Oh right, that’s a thing. Yeah, we can shove everything into Jongin’s room or whatever. Man, that last lecture was terrifyingly dull. I swear my brain cells shriveled up and died. Are you even listening?" Jongdae asks. Chanyeol’s disgruntled voice, along with the cats’ pitiful meowing can faintly be heard through the receiver. "Is, uh, is everything okay?" 

"You wanna be sauteed or fried?" Chanyeol asks, jabbing his finger at Lulu. The feline latches on. "GET OFF!" 

"I swear I’ll be home soon!" Jongdae promises. "If you were nicer, they would like you more." 

"I AM NICE! STOP THAT!"

"We’re here--HOLY shit, son of a bitch," Minho curses like a sailor as he nearly trips over a cat on his way into the apartment. "Forgot you had Xing’s cats." 

"I wish I could forget, too." Chanyeol greets him and Jinki with a firm handshake. 

"Are you a dog person?" Jinki chuckles. 

"I only agreed because Jongdae promised to do all the work. I still have to coexist with them, though." Chanyeol heaves a sigh. 

"Taeminnie’s on his way with Jonghyun, and Sehun is--" 

"Sehun’s right here," a voice informs Jinki from the entrance, where the apartment door has been left slightly ajar. "Hello, hyungs and kitties." 

"Hi! Welcome! Please come in," Jongdae appears from around the corner and waves. "Make yourself at home. Do you want something to drink? I prepared snacks, but I’m not sure if skaters eat or not." 

"Retiring skaters eat," Jinki declares. 

"I second this," Sehun deadpans. 

"For the last time, you’re not allowed to retire until you beat me." Minho narrows his eyes. 

"You can’t make me skate until I’m seventy, hyung," Sehun complains as Jongdae places a tray of fruit and crackers on the coffee table. 

"Gotta work a little harder then, don’t you?" Minho smirks and settles on the couch next to Jinki. 

"Where’s Lulu?" Jongdae asks when Luobo curls around his ankles. 

"Oh, I tripped over her when I came in," Minho supplies. Jongdae stares at him. "Not sure where she went, though." 

"Chanyeol," Jongdae’s tone is deadly calm. "Where’s the other cat?" 

"Fuck if I know. In the oven, hopefully." Sehun laughs at this. 

"Did you shut the front door?" 

"... No?" 

"Well, shit," Minho comments, standing up to go help Jongdae find a potentially lost cat. "I guess you can’t have cats and win a National title." 

"I presume you’re looking for this one?" Jonghyun inquires in the stairwell, motioning to the purring kitty in his arms. Jongdae places a relieved hand over his heart and exhales loudly. 

"Oh my God, thank you so much. I have no idea what I was going to do if she actually got lost." 

"No problem. I caught her while she was making her grand escape. Or, well, Taemin caught her." Jonghyun transfers the cat into Jongdae’s cradle. 

"Did you find her?" Minho inquires, footsteps echoing as he walks down the stairs. Jongdae nods and turns around. "Good. I see you found a wild Taeminnie, too." 

"Hi, hyungie." Taemin waves up at Minho, still scratching Lulu’s ears. "So adorable," he coos. Jongdae smirks. 

"Not as adorable as you," he says quietly. Taemin looks like he’s struggling to react as light pink dusts his cheeks and nose. A couple of steps above them, Minho claps his hand to his mouth and Jonghyun’s jaw drops. 

"Don’t say anything, don’t say anything," Minho mouths to Jonghyun, holding in his laughter. 

"You found it." Chanyeol glares at the purring cat in Jongdae’s arms when they make it back into the apartment. 

"I don’t care how much you hate cats, Chanyeol, you can’t just lose Yixing-hyung’s cat," Jongdae scolds. 

"Cats don’t deserve rights. Come in, though." Chanyeol ushers everyone into the living room. "How was practice?" 

"It was good," Jonghyun says conversationally, taking up the armchair that Yixing usually likes. "Went pretty smoothly. No big problems." 

"Just trying to maintain consistency for competition," Jinki adds. Taemin sits down towards the end of the couch; Jongdae plops himself right next to him. 

"Do you mind?" he asks, giving the skater a rather flirtatious smile. 

"No, it’s… it’s fine." Taemin fidgets with his fingers somewhat nervously, trying to suppress a smile. Chanyeol flicks through the channels on TV while Minho leans over to whisper in Jinki’s ear. 

"I think there’s some roommate K-drama shit going down in this apartment." 

"Ah, why?" 

"Just watch." Minho jerks his head to Taemin and Jongdae. 

"Are you a cat person?" Jongdae asks, batting his eyelashes at Taemin. 

"I’m a skates person." Taemin raises a playful eyebrow. 

"Well, I guess I can’t argue with that. You catch my eye every time I go to watch practice with Jongin." 

"That’s the goal," Taemin muses. "I’m glad to hear that my program component score will probably be high." But Jongdae isn’t finished.

"Although you would catch my eye just about anywhere." 

"I told you," Minho hisses as Jinki closes his eyes for the briefest of moments. "I fucking told you." 

"He has guts, I’ll give him that." 

"Yeah, Jongin really needs to, like," Minho snaps his fingers "get on his A game or some shit." 

"His A game isn’t enough," Jinki dismisses. "You need to be a Quad Axel to get him." 

"Who’s commentating?" Sehun asks, slightly oblivious. "Not it." 

"I can." Jonghyun saves them the argument. "Jongin’s in the last group." 

"WOO!" Minho claps just for this statement. 

"Skating first after the warm-up. Fourth place after the short program. He leads over Lutfullin by a little over 3 points." 

"What’s good about skating later?" Chanyeol asks, unceremoniously dumping Luobo off of his lap and onto the floor. 

"Based on the results of the short program, the skating order of the free skate is ‘reversed’ from placements," Jinki supplies. "Within warm-up groups, it’s still randomized, but the gist of it is that the worse you do, the earlier you skate in the free skate. And the better you do, the later you get to skate." 

"Nini didn’t fall, that’s all I am aware of." Jongdae watches the current skater in vague interest. 

"Nini did well. His Triple Lutz-Triple Toe combination got scored with positive GOEs," Taemin murmurs. "That’s a good combo for him. He didn’t really catch the connection, but he was calm. It was a good skate for him." 

"Connection?" Jongdae asks. 

"It’s a pretty specific idea. You’ll only really understand it if you try skating."

"Even that is an understatement," Minho muses. "Only unicorns can understand this connection that you’re talking about. Out of the best skaters in the world, I can only think of 4-5 who are currently competing that have grasped it." 

"There’s another type of connection that I know I understand." 

"Jongdae." Chanyeol doesn’t look at him, but he sighs heavily. "Please have a little dignity." 

"What?" Jongdae asks innocently. 

"The skater’s job is to establish a connection between themself and the audience as well." Taemin beams. "So it’s a good thing you feel that one."

"Nini just got on," Sehun points out the warm-up group. 

"He looks tense." Jonghyun frowns. "I hope he’ll loosen up in the next few minutes." 

"How can you tell?" Chanyeol gawks. 

"Some intuition, observing his body language, watching him skate. It also helps if you’re at the rink everyday and you watch them all the time." Jonghyun cups his cheek with one hand. 

"I love him to death, but he looks like a puppy in a pack of wolves," Minho sighs, watching Jongin’s darting eyes. "Be a little fiercer, darling." 

"Kyungsoo should calm him down." Jinki worries his bottom lip. 

"He only has six minutes, he skates first. He needs to stay low in his knees and attack those jumps, get the confidence flowing."

"Would you call the edge on that Lutz?" Sehun asks the room. 

"It was on the border. I’d send it to review, probably," Jonghyun replies. "Oh, that’s Yuma Kagiyama. Keep an eye on him for sure, he’s got explosive height and power. 2nd at Japanese Junior Nationals last year, 6th in the Senior division. Word on the street is that he’s got at least three consistent Quads already." 

"Which ones?" Taemin asks keenly. 

"Salchow, Toe, Loop. He mostly sticks to Sal and Toe though. Kyungsoo says they’re going to allow Quads next year in Junior."

"What." Sehun’s head snaps to Jonghyun. 

"Most Juniors already have them, so I don’t see it as very far-fetched," Jinki nods thoughtfully.

"Sehun, you’ll be fine. You honestly just need one, in my opinion." Minho waves it off carelessly.

"You can compete in Junior and Senior?" Chanyeol looks lost with all the technical jargon flying around the room. 

"They’re not doing Quads?" Jongdae waves at the TV cluelessly. 

"Yes, you can compete up one level; no, those are all Triples," Jonghyun answers patiently. "But like I said, Quads by next year. Kyungsoo’s rarely wrong." 

"Here we go." Minho crosses his arms as the camera focuses on Jongin, shaking his legs out by the boards while Kyungsoo talks to him quietly. 

"Ah, I’m nervous." Taemin laughs and presses the palm of his hand against his heart. 

"Feel free to hold my hand whenever you want." 

"Ahem!" Jonghyun clears his throat and glares pointedly at Jongdae. Minho drops his head to compose himself before looking up just as Jongin presents to the audience. 

"JGP Poland has proven to be much more competitive than JGP USA," Jinki remarks, giving Jonghyun a start to his commentary. 

"Yes, I agree. If we look at the short program standings, Samsonov, who is currently in first place, scored 87 points, whereas Shun Sato only managed 79 at Lake Placid. The competition is certainly much more brutal, but Jongin has done an even better job here than at his first JGP assignment. First up, Triple Lutz-Triple Toe--" the entire room holds their breath. "OH my God, gorgeous." 

"ATTA BOY!" Minho looks so proud already. 

"Next up, one of Jongin’s inconsistencies, Triple Axel. He managed to land it in the short, and he needs this if he wants to hold onto the podium." 

"Up," Taemin mutters, snapping his fingers. "Check! Good." 

"Clearly not inconsistent this week, it seems. That was as beautiful as the one we saw during warm-up." 

"His Lutz-Toe was honestly so good," Sehun murmurs. "I still can’t get over it." 

"He should consider putting that in the back half of his program for the 10% bonus," Jinki agrees as Jongin exits a fast combination spin. "Breathe. He’s getting tired." 

"Already?" Jongdae inquires. 

"He’s got stamina, he can last, but it’s always a struggle. Nice and easy Triple Loop, strategically placed to give him a break." 

"Connection," Taemin says suddenly, sitting up straight. "There, there, there, ah." He sighs as Jongin slips out of it for his flying sit spin. "But did you see it, hyung?" 

"Yep. You were right." Minho nods. "Sehun, you should try and find those moments as well." 

"I kind of saw it." 

"He’s doing really good," Chanyeol mumbles around a mouthful of fruit. "Woah, that was cool." 

"He’s transitioning to the second half of his program. This is his last major jumping pass he needs to get, everything else is relatively easy for him. Triple Flip-Single Euler-Triple Flip. Oop, a little scratchy on the landing, but that knee bend saved him." 

"Was that connection?" Sehun asks. 

"You could say so." Taemin purses his lips. "It’s more muscle memory, but you’re not completely wrong." 

"However nervous he was in the warm up, it seems as if he’s calmed down now," Jinki murmurs. "Really good to see him skate like this. Beautiful Triple Lutz." 

"He jumps soooo much," Jongdae sighs. "I’m tired just watching him." 

"Two more left. Double Axel, very easy for him--yep, stunning. And last one…" Minho holds his breath as Jongin flies into his Triple Salchow-Double Toe. "OH!" 

"That’s TWO clean programs for Jongin at JGP Poland’s Baltic Cup," Jonghyun beams. "What a way to finish off his JGP debut." 

"He looks so happy," Jinki coos. Jongin pulls into his last spin and lands in his final position triumphantly, chest heaving up and down, the biggest smile stretched across his face. The living room erupts into applause along with the audience inside the stadium. "Go, Nini, go! Good boy," the eldest skater chuckles when Jongin nearly falls while bowing. "That’s okay. Doesn’t matter now." 

"Score?" Jonghyun asks. 

"Somewhere around 135," Taemin guesses. "So a total of 216?" 

"Seems right. I don’t think there were any elements that would be sent to review." Minho nods. 

"He made so much progress in only two weeks," Sehun remarks. "That was quite some skate." 

"Your mental condition can vary a lot, especially at the beginning of international events where the pressure starts to mount," Jinki explains. "Ideally, as you become more experienced, you also become more consistent. Some people are just naturally good at competing, though--take Nathan Chen or Changmin. Even Taeminnie over there." All of them watch the slow motion replays of Jongin’s jumps and spins. "His skating is maturing. It’s much smoother and powerful than it was last year." 

"Yes," Taemin agrees. "Nice, deep edges for the most part during the step sequence, good carriage… ah, Nini skated well. He’ll be happy. He wanted to do good, I’m sure he surprised himself." Taemin smiles brightly. Chanyeol watches him thoughtfully. 

"Here they come. 217.11--WOW, shattered his personal best by a few leagues. He’ll be over the moon about that." Minho nods in approval. "Especially that lead. He only needs to beat two people to stay on the podium."

CURRENT STANDINGS

1 |  Jongin KIM | 217.11  
---|---|---  
2 |  Joseph PHAN | 207.70  
3 |  Ivan SHMURATKO | 201.90  
4 |  Aleksandr SELEVKO | 185.86  
5 |  Dinh TRAN | 175.23  
  
www.isu.org

"Hyung, your estimate was spot on." Sehun looks over at Taemin, impressed. 

"He’s in first right now, but I think he’ll probably be fourth," Taemin tells him. "Judging by what I saw from the short program. The podium isn’t likely to change, it’s been such a tight competition. Although Lutfullin or Grassl might beat him. Dunk shouldn’t be a problem though, seeing as the difference between their short program scores is so large."

"I completely trust whatever you say," Jongdae purrs. "Thank you so much for coming over to join us in cheering for Nini!" 

"Oh, of course. It’s always fun to get everyone together," Jinki replies warmly. "Thanks for having us." 

"You’re free to stay if you like," Chanyeol offers. "Take a cat if you leave, they’re free." This earns a chuckle. 

"Taeminnie has to go," Jonghyun declares. "He has studying to do." 

"Can I get a picture with you before you leave?" Jongdae pouts and makes puppy eyes at the skater. "I’m your fan, too." 

"We should really go." Jonghyun raises an eyebrow, but Taemin only giggles as Jongdae pulls his phone out. 

"Okie." He leans forward and holds a thumbs up. 

"Thank you so much," Jongdae gushes. Behind him, Minho and Jinki look like they’re about to explode. Sehun has also noticed, and is exchanging incredulous glances with Chanyeol, who just shakes his head tiredly. "Fighting for your exams! You’re really an ace, aren’t you? Good at skating, school, and being cute." Taemin opens his mouth to reply, eyes sparkling with mischief, but Jonghyun wraps an arm around his waist protectively and practically shoves him towards the door, giving Jongdae a pointed side-eye. 

"We’ll see you all soon. Good night!"

JUNIOR MEN, FINAL RESULTS

1 |  Daniil SAMSONOV | 246.51  
---|---|---  
2 |  Yuma KAGIYAMA | 240.35  
3 |  Daniel GRASSL | 222.64  
4 |  Jongin KIM | 217.11  
5 |  Gleb LUTFULLIN | 212.01  
6 |  Joseph PHAN | 207.70  
7 |  Ryan DUNK | 205.90  
8 |  Ivan SHMURATKO | 201.90  
9 |  Aleksandr SELEVKO | 185.86  
10 |  Dinh TRAN | 175.23  
11 |  Corey CIRCELLI | 172.72  
12 |  Rakhat BRALIN | 170.28  
13 |  Alexander LEBEDEV | 161.71  
14 |  Luanfeng LI | 154.68  
15 |  Andreas NORDEBACK | 153.89  
16 |  Kornel WITKOWSKI | 151.09  
17 |  Filip SCERBA | 144.40  
18 |  Noah BODENSTEIN | 143.39  
19 |  Yann FRECHON | 137.12  
20 |  Alp Eren OZKAN | 136.14  
21 |  Louis WEISSERT | 134.63  
22 |  Egor KHLOPKOV | 120.01  
23 |  Jakub LOFEK | 118.37  
24 |  Joseph Alexander ZAKIPOUR | 114.40  
25 |  Makar SUNTSEV | 114.16  
26 |  Sinali SANGO | 102.72  
27 |  Didier DIJKSTRA | 99.33  
  
www.isu.org

Back in his hotel room, freshly showered and changed, Jongin alternates between packing up his belongings and replying to the slew of text messages from everyone back home, congratulating him for his fourth place finish. He snaps a picture of his fourth place pewter medal and sends it to Taemin, but he doesn’t really expect a response. He’s either studying or sleeping by now. Jongdae, however, texts him first.

Jongdae hyung 

Jongdae hyung 

img.2188 

good job ! 

Jongin studies the picture closely, focusing in on Taemin’s amused expression, his eyes curled into half-moons, and Jongdae’s wide, mischievous smile. Something in the pit of his stomach twists nervously. 

Jongdae hyung 

thx 

stop messing with him 

Jongdae hyung 

I didn’t do anything ! 

just watched u together w everyone 

cats had a great time 

:/ 

Jongdae hyung 

u have no faith in ur man or ur roommate 

please ask him out already 

he kept talking about how good you did, nini 

really? 

what did he say 

Jongdae hyung 

i’m starting to think you don’t read any of my text messages 

I did :( 

Jongdae hyung 

if u don’t ask him out i will 

DON’T 

he’s gonna say no anyway its literally the middle of comp szn 

Jongdae hyung 

Exactly 

good way to let off some stress dont u think ;) 

HYUNG WTF 

Jongdae hyung 

nini 

deadass 

this guy is going to win the 2022 olympics before you make a move 

ask him while he’s still in your league at least 

HE IS ALREADY OUT OF MY LEAGUE 

IDEK WHY HE TALKS TO HME 

Jongdae hyung 

i was JOKING 

hon, if he only talked ot people in his league, he wouldn’t talk to ANYONE 

you don’t HAVE to be specfuckingtacular at skating for him to like you nini wtf 

like look at baek, the guy has the coordination of a pencil sharpener and he’s literally dating china’s national champion 

://// 

what if he says no 

Jongdae hyung 

join the fucking club 

i like being friends too.... 

Jongdae hyung 

that’s what they all say. :) 

Jongin stares at the text messages, biting his lip anxiously. He would be lying if he said that the very thought of Lee Taemin didn’t make his chest flutter. But it’s the middle of competition season, and both of them are approaching CSAT exam day. Dating is probably the furthest thing from Taemin’s mind right now, even if there is the barest chance that he might actually like Jongin back… Jongin slowly swipes out of Jongdae’s texts and moves to Taemin’s, looking down at the picture of his medal that remains unanswered. 

_I know you’re busy, but do you want to go out?_

Jongin holds his breath, feeling his heart beat faster than it did a few hours earlier, right before he was about to perform. The ‘send’ button is right there. He could just do it and maybe Taemin would say yes…

Taemin-ah 

Taemin-ah 

img.4930 

ah, I finally found it~ 

congratulations! 6v6 

Jongin deletes his text message so he can reply to Taemin’s picture of his own medal which he earned from JGP Poland a few years ago. He replied. It’s so late in Korea, but he still replied. 

Taemin-ah 

Thank u ! 

i’m so happy i was able to medal! 

your tips helped so much ^_^ 

Taemin-ah 

I’m glad ^o^ you did well~ 

i’m going to sleep now 💤 

have a safe flight 6v6 

yes it’s late, u should sleep 

good night taemin-ah 

Jongin hesitates, then texts one more time. 

Taemin-ah 

💙 

Taemin-ah 

💙💙💙💙💙 

good night~ 

Bonus time! You'll meet our Chinese treasure Yixing as well as canon Yuma Kagiyama, who participated in JGP Poland as well and is as of the day of this writing breaking into the Senior skating landscape quite impressively. We are revealing some information in the bios as well which is not necessarily mentioned in the chapters already.

After the bios, you’ll find all tables from today’s chapter (starting orders and results of the various events).

Small reminder that the ISU has dates in the format of DD.MM.YYYY and we kept that for our version of the ISU bios. You can find Yuma Kagiyama’s official ISU bio here: <http://www.isuresults.com/bios/isufs00102339.htm>. In the fic we are only about three quarters into 2019, so you will see events in his official bio that are not listed in our back-dated bio yet.

Some of the tables in the bios are too wide for a mobile screen, so you'll have to scroll sideways if you are reading on mobile to see their full (inter)national competition history.

_Junior Men_

Yuma KAGIYAMA

JPN

Date of birth | 05.05.2003 (16)  
---|---  
Place of birth | Yokohama  
Height | 160 cm  
Home town | Yokohama  
Profession | High school student  
Hobbies | Game, listening to music  
Start skating / current Club |  **2008** / **Seisa Highschool Yokohama** |   
Internet / Social Media contact | [yuma_kagiyama15 on Instagram](https://www.instagram.com/yuma_kagiyama15/)  
  
Coach | Masakazu Kagiyama, Misao Sato  
---|---  
Choreographer | Lori Nichol  
Former Coach | N/A  
Practice off season |  **24** h/week **Yokohama/JPN**  
Practice competitive season |  **26** h/week **Yokohama/JPN**  
  
Music Short Program as of season 2019/2020  
**Vocussion by Yo-Yo Ma & The Silkroad Ensemble, Rabih Abou-Khalil**

Music Free Skating / Free Dance as of season 2019/2020  
**Jake Enters His Avatar World (from "Avatar" soundtrack) by James Horner  
The Bioluminescence of the Night (from "Avatar" soundtrack) by James Horner  
Gathering All the Na'vi Clans for battle (from "Avatar" soundtrack) by James Horner**

Personal Best Total Score  
---  
240.35 | 21.09.2019 | JGP Poland 2019  
Personal Best Score Short Program  
84.72 | 18.09.2019 | JGP Poland 2019  
Personal Best Score Free Skate  
155.63 | 21.09.2019 | JGP Poland 2019  
  
| 12 / 13 | 13 / 14 | 14 / 15 | 15 / 16 | 16 / 17 | 17 / 18 | 18 / 19 | 19 / 20  
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---  
Olympic Games  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |   
World Championship  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |   
European Championship  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |   
Four Continents  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |   
World Juniors  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |   
National Championship  |  |  |  |  | 11.J | 12.J | 6.S, 5.J |   
  
S=Senior; J=Junior; N=Novice

International Competition | Year | Place  
---|---|---  
ISU JGP Canada 2018, Richmond | 2018 | 4.J  
ISU JGP Armenia 2018, Yerevan | 2018 | 2.J  
Challenge Cup 2019, Den Haag | 2018 | 2.  
ISU JGP France 2019, Courchevel | 2018 | 1.J  
ISU JGP Poland 2019, Gdansk | 2018 | 2.J  
  
Kagiyama is coached by his father Masakazu, who competed at the 1992 and 1994 Olympic Winter Games in figure skating.

_Men_

Yixing ZHANG

CHN

Date of birth | 07.10.1996 (22)  
---|---  
Place of birth | Changsha  
Height | 176 cm  
Home town | Changsha  
Profession | N/A  
Hobbies | Gaming  
Start skating / current Club |  **2000** / **Changsha Figure Skating Club** |   
Internet / Social Media contact | [layzhang on Instagram](https://www.instagram.com/layzhang/)  
  
Coach | Kibum Kim, Kyungsoo Do  
---|---  
Choreographer | Minseok Kim  
Former Coach | Fu Caishu  
Practice off season |  **16** h/week **Seoul/SK**  
Practice competitive season |  **20** h/week **Seoul/SK**  
  
Music Short Program as of season 2019/2020  
**Odyssey - Theme by League of Legends**

Music Free Skating / Free Dance as of season 2019/2020  
**La terre vue du ciel by Armand Amar**

Personal Best Total Score  
---  
302.65 | 16.09.2019 | Chinese National Championships 2019  
Personal Best Score Short Program  
95.25 | 14.09.2019 | Chinese National Championships 2019  
Personal Best Score Free Skate  
207.40 | 16.09.2019 | Chinese National Championships 2019  
  
| 12 / 13 | 13 / 14 | 14 / 15 | 15 / 16 | 16 / 17 | 17 / 18 | 18 / 19 | 19 / 20  
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---  
Olympic Games  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |   
World Championship  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |   
European Championship  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |   
Four Continents  |  |  |  |  |  | 10 |  |   
World Juniors  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |   
National Championship  | 10.J | 12.J | 6.J | 7.S | 8.S | 5.S | 2.S | 1.S  
  
S=Senior; J=Junior; N=Novice

International Competition | Year | Place  
---|---|---  
ISU Cup of China 2016, Beijing | 2016 | 13.  
ISU Nebelhorn Trophy 2017 | 2017 | 5.  
ISU Cup of China 2017, Beijing | 2017 | 7.  
ISU Skate America 2017, Lake Placid | 2017 | 7.  
ISU Shanghai Trophy 2018 | 2018 | 3.  
ISU Nebelhorn Trophy 2018 | 2018 | 3.  
ISU Grand Prix of Helsinki 2018, Helsinki | 2018 | 4.  
ISU Internationaux de France 2018, Grenoble | 2018 | 5.  
  
Yixing Zhang currently trains in Seoul, South Korea under the 1994 Olympic Bronze Medalist Kim Kibum following a coaching change at the end of the 2016-2017 competitive season. In his spare time, he enjoys playing with his cats and cheering for the e-sports team SKT T1.

MEN - SHORT PROGRAM, STARTING ORDER

1 |  Luanfeng LI  
---|---  
2 |  Mutong LIU  
3 |  Runqi LIU  
4 |  Qinglong RONG  
5 |  Zhibo QU  
6 |  He ZHANG  
7 |  Lap Kan Lincoln YUEN  
8 |  Yixing ZHANG  
9 |  Zhihong LIU  
10 |  Boyang JIN  
  
www.isu.org

MEN, STANDINGS AFTER SHORT PROGRAM

1 |  Boyang JIN | 98.01  
---|---|---  
2 |  Yixing ZHANG | 95.25  
3 |  He ZHANG | 73.46  
4 |  Mutong LIU | 60.77  
5 |  Luanfeng LI | 58.04  
6 |  Qinglong RONG | 56.59  
7 |  Zhibo QU | 54.24  
8 |  Runqi LIU | 52.08  
9 |  Lap Kan Lincoln YUEN | 49.71  
10 |  Zhihong LIU | 44.47  
  
www.isu.org

MEN - FREE SKATING, STARTING ORDERSHORT PROGRAM

1 |  Lap Kan Lincoln YUEN | 9 | 49.71  
---|---|---|---  
2 |  Qinglong RONG | 6 | 56.59  
3 |  Zhihong LIU | 10 | 44.47  
4 |  Runqi LIU | 8 | 52.08  
5 |  Zhibo QU | 7 | 54.24  
6 |  Luanfeng LI | 5 | 58.04  
7 |  He ZHANG | 3 | 73.46  
8 |  Yixing ZHANG | 2 | 95.25  
9 |  Boyang JIN | 1 | 98.01  
10 |  Mutong LIU | 4 | 60.77  
  
www.isu.org

MEN, FINAL RESULTS

1 |  Yixing ZHANG | 302.65  
---|---|---  
2 |  Boyang JIN | 302.59  
3 |  He ZHANG | 211.51  
4 |  Runqi LIU | 165.67  
5 |  Luanfeng LI | 164.74  
6 |  Zhibo QU | 163.95  
7 |  Qinglong RONG | 158.45  
8 |  Mutong LIU | 155.44  
9 |  Lap Kan Lincoln YUEN | 134.96  
10 |  Zhihong LIU | 113.47  
  
www.isu.org

JUNIOR MEN - SHORT PROGRAM, STARTING ORDER

1 |  Noah BODENSTEIN  
---|---  
2 |  Corey CIRCELLI  
3 |  Daniil SAMSONOV  
4 |  Yann FRECHON  
5 |  Luanfeng LI  
6 |  Makar SUNTSEV  
7 |  Daniel GRASSL  
8 |  Rakhat BRALIN  
9 |  Sinali SANGO  
10 |  Louis WEISSERT  
11 |  Aleksandr SELEVKO  
12 |  Ryan DUNK  
13 |  Alexander LEBEDEV  
14 |  Yuma KAGIYAMA  
15 |  Didier DIJKSTRA  
16 |  Alp Eren OZKAN  
17 |  Kornel WITKOWSKI  
18 |  Egor KHLOPKOV  
19 |  Gleb LUTFULLIN  
20 |  Joseph Alexander ZAKIPOUR  
21 |  Ivan SHMURATKO  
22 |  Jongin KIM  
23 |  Dinh TRAN  
24 |  Andreas NORDEBACK  
25 |  Jakub LOFEK  
26 |  Filip SCERBA  
27 |  Joseph PHAN  
  
www.isu.org

JUNIOR MEN, STANDINGS AFTER SHORT PROGRAM

1 |  Daniil SAMSONOV | 87.33  
---|---|---  
2 |  Yuma KAGIYAMA | 84.72  
3 |  Daniel GRASSL | 81.01  
4 |  Jongin KIM | 79.55  
5 |  Gleb LUTFULLIN | 76.35  
6 |  Ryan DUNK | 72.90  
7 |  Joseph PHAN | 71.88  
8 |  Ivan SHMURATKO | 70.13  
9 |  Aleksandr SELEVKO | 66.63  
10 |  Corey CIRCELLI | 65.24  
11 |  Alexander LEBEDEV | 61.94  
12 |  Rakhat BRALIN | 59.54  
13 |  Dinh TRAN | 56.88  
14 |  Luanfeng LI | 55.34  
15 |  Kornel WITKOWSKI | 54.88  
16 |  Andreas NORDEBACK | 53.92  
17 |  Noah BODENSTEIN | 52.47  
18 |  Louis WEISSERT | 50.61  
19 |  Filip SCERBA | 49.29  
20 |  Egor KHLOPKOV | 48.31  
21 |  Alp Eren OZKAN | 45.08  
22 |  Jakub LOFEK | 43.13  
23 |  Yann FRECHON | 41.83  
24 |  Joseph Alexander ZAKIPOUR | 41.71  
25 |  Makar SUNTSEV | 41.26  
26 |  Didier DIJKSTRA | 35.72  
27 |  Sinali SANGO | 35.15  
  
www.isu.org

JUNIOR MEN - FREE SKATING, STARTING ORDERSHORT PROGRAM

1 |  Yann FRECHON | 23 | 41.83  
---|---|---|---  
2 |  Makar SUNTSEV | 25 | 41.26  
3 |  Sinali SANGO | 27 | 35.15  
4 |  Didier DIJKSTRA | 26 | 35.72  
5 |  Joseph Alexander ZAKIPOUR | 24 | 41.71  
6 |  Louis WEISSERT | 18 | 50.61  
7 |  Alp Eren OZKAN | 21 | 45.08  
8 |  Filip SCERBA | 19 | 49.29  
9 |  Egor KHLOPKOV | 20 | 48.31  
10 |  Jakub LOFEK | 22 | 43.13  
11 |  Luanfeng LI | 14 | 55.34  
12 |  Dinh TRAN | 13 | 56.88  
13 |  Andreas NORDEBACK | 16 | 53.92  
14 |  Kornel WITKOWSKI | 15 | 54.88  
15 |  Noah BODENSTEIN | 17 | 52.47  
16 |  Alexander LEBEDEV | 11 | 61.94  
17 |  Rakhat BRALIN | 12 | 59.54  
18 |  Ivan SHMURATKO | 8 | 70.13  
19 |  Aleksandr SELEVKO | 9 | 66.63  
20 |  Corey CIRCELLI | 10 | 65.24  
21 |  Joseph PHAN | 7 | 71.88  
22 |  Jongin KIM | 4 | 79.55  
23 |  Ryan DUNK | 6 | 72.90  
24 |  Gleb LUTFULLIN | 5 | 76.35  
25 |  Yuma KAGIYAMA | 2 | 84.72  
26 |  Daniel GRASSL | 3 | 81.01  
27 |  Daniil SAMSONOV | 1 | 87.33  
  
www.isu.org

JUNIOR MEN, FINAL RESULTS

1 |  Daniil SAMSONOV | 246.51  
---|---|---  
2 |  Yuma KAGIYAMA | 240.35  
3 |  Daniel GRASSL | 222.64  
4 |  Jongin KIM | 217.11  
5 |  Gleb LUTFULLIN | 212.01  
6 |  Joseph PHAN | 207.70  
7 |  Ryan DUNK | 205.90  
8 |  Ivan SHMURATKO | 201.90  
9 |  Aleksandr SELEVKO | 185.86  
10 |  Dinh TRAN | 175.23  
11 |  Corey CIRCELLI | 172.72  
12 |  Rakhat BRALIN | 170.28  
13 |  Alexander LEBEDEV | 161.71  
14 |  Luanfeng LI | 154.68  
15 |  Andreas NORDEBACK | 153.89  
16 |  Kornel WITKOWSKI | 151.09  
17 |  Filip SCERBA | 144.40  
18 |  Noah BODENSTEIN | 143.39  
19 |  Yann FRECHON | 137.12  
20 |  Alp Eren OZKAN | 136.14  
21 |  Louis WEISSERT | 134.63  
22 |  Egor KHLOPKOV | 120.01  
23 |  Jakub LOFEK | 118.37  
24 |  Joseph Alexander ZAKIPOUR | 114.40  
25 |  Makar SUNTSEV | 114.16  
26 |  Sinali SANGO | 102.72  
27 |  Didier DIJKSTRA | 99.33  
  
www.isu.org

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> \\(^o^)/ We're back with another long ass extra chapter that took up 106 pages in Google Docs and an entire spreadsheet of scores! Don't you love when the characters are high-achieving? -.-  
>  I told Aranee that if you all didn't like this, I'm going to throw a TINee cat at you all, so pick your poison, I guess. <3 (That cat is so cute. I'm over it. Life is unfair)  
>  We'll keep updating, but who knows if Jongin is going to make substantial progress ;) Thank you as always, your support means everything <333333
> 
> 💙💙💙💙💙 ;)
> 
> Thank you for reading~ I decided to highlight our skaters in all the score tables, because it can get overwhelming to find them, especially with big events like JGP Poland. Hope it helped a little =).
> 
> I am so excited for SHINee upcoming comeback, consider checking out Don't Call Me when it's out on the 22nd <3.
> 
> See you all soon (and hopefully more pictures of Taemin's adorbale kitten as well) XD.

**Author's Note:**

> Kudos and comments are always appreciated!  
> Find me on [Twitter](https://twitter.com/kidonNini) or [Curious Cat](https://curiouscat.me/kidonie_) if you're shy!


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